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Aiming for what would be just a fifth tour victory in their illustrious legacy, the All Blacks have traveled to Europe at an pivotal moment.

Fixtures against Ireland, the Scottish side, England and Wales await the New Zealand team across the coming month but, in addition to the chance to join the teams of 1978, 2005, 2008 and 2010 in the history books, the games will be used as a yardstick to measure the improvement of the squad under a head coach now well established from assuming control.

Present Difficulties

Questions over a lack of an distinctive approach, continuing controversies over selection and exits from the coaching ticket have all contributed to the feeling that the best-known side in the rugby is presently one in a state of flux.

Most pertinently, it is the dip in results from a past excellence set between the global tournaments of the last decade that has caused some to theorize that we have transitioned away of the period of All Black exceptionalism.

Team Record

Prior to their departure for the northern hemisphere, it was announced that in the coming year, in the lack of the southern hemisphere competition, the All Blacks will play South Africa in a warm-weather tour called 'an unprecedented series'.

Traditionally the game's two strongest sides, there is no question over who has recently got the better of what organizers have called 'The Premier Rivalry'.

Over the past seven years, the Springboks have secured a two of global tournaments, three southern hemisphere titles and a tour against the British and Irish Lions to be viewed as the side of their generation.

New Zealand have maintained to defeat Ireland when it matters most, overcoming Saturday's opponents in the global competition of the past two tournaments. They have, at the same time, lost just a couple of the last fixtures with the English team, have defeated the Welsh side in all matches since 1963 and have remained unbeaten by Scotland.

Shifting Balance

But the loss of their standing as the game's gold standard will remain frustrating.

Although the New Zealand team excelled through the 2010s - winning eighty-seven percent of their international games, as well as winning the World Cup on two occasions - the World Cup of the previous competition can now be seen as when the competitive landscape moved in the international rugby.

New Zealand defeated the Springboks in their opening match of the championship in Japan, but it was the South Africans who were eventually successful in the championship match.

From that point, the All Blacks' winning percentage has dropped to seventy-one percent. South Africa themselves were defeated in 10 of their subsequent fixtures but, commencing of last year, have achieved victory at a rate (eighty-three percent) to compete with even the former Kiwi champions.

Head-to-Head

Over the equivalent timeframe, the Springboks have secured victory in five of the recent encounters between the sides, comprising victory in the recent championship match.

While securing their most recent regional title, South Africa inflicted a record 43-10 defeat on the New Zealand team thanks to 36 unanswered second-half points in Wellington, a outcome which has ignited another series of debate concerning the development of the team under their leader.

Possibly most troubling for followers of the All Blacks will be that, allied to their characteristic physicality, South Africa's achievement has come with an attacking verve more usually associated with their traditional rivals.

Playing Philosophy

During the period when the All Blacks were at the height of their abilities a decade past, they were a clinical transition team capable of destroying opponents from any part of the pitch and at any moment of the game.

Currently, their playing philosophy is unclear as the coach, who has handed out numerous first caps during his 24 months in control, tries to first establish the more prosaic building blocks of a successful side.

It has recently revealed that the assistant coach in charge of scoring, the current coach, will leave his role after the upcoming matches, making him the additional person of the coaching staff to exit after another coach departed last year after just five Tests.

Performance Gap

It was not merely previous achievements, but his style, that was expected to transfer from Crusaders when he assumed control after the global competition but, as yet, both are still a work in progress.

Organizational Strategy

When financial organization the company acquired shares in All Blacks in recent years, the ensuing statement spoke of the "quest of new global opportunities" for the organization.

That objective has maybe been more difficult by the lack of a crossover star. Their key player and the trio of family members continue to be household names in the sport, but the concentration of stars has become more diverse. The captain is the only New Zealand player to receive global recognition in the past six seasons, in contrast to ten awards in 13 years between the mid-2000s.

Global Expansion

Alternatively, efforts have been undertaken to establish the New Zealand team into new territories.

The first leg of this 'Grand Slam' tour brings New Zealand not to the Irish capital but Chicago, a comeback to the location where the Irish team achieved a first ever victory in the fixture during past tours.

Following the relaxation of pandemic limitations, the All Blacks have furthermore