5 Times All Blacks faced Clubs ahead of Stormers clash

Dave Rennie's men face the Stormers in Cape Town, opening the Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry Tour. New Zealand have embarked upon a British & Irish Lions-esque tour across the land of green and gold, as they face the Sharks, Bulls and Lions before a four-Test series against the Springboks, with the final meeting taking place in Maryland, USA.

The Stormers are by no means the first club side to find themselves standing across from the formidable New Zealand Haka. Throughout the history of All Blacks tours, the national team has occasionally been asked to test itself against some of the world's most famous provincial, club and representative sides.

Those fixtures have produced everything from comfortable victories to extraordinary upsets. They have also provided some fascinating snapshots of New Zealand rugby across different eras, with legendary All Blacks taking on opposition who were determined to make the occasion count. Ahead of tonight's historic meeting in Cape Town, here are the five most recent occasions when a New Zealand men's 15s side faced club or university opposition.

The most recent meeting between New Zealand and Cambridge University came during the All Blacks' marathon 1978 tour of Britain and Ireland. New Zealand arrived in Cambridge having already begun what would become a demanding series of fixtures across the United Kingdom and Ireland. The university side represented another opportunity for the tourists to test their squad away from the pressure of the official internationals.

The scholars most famously boasted Eddie Butler, who captained Wales and played for the British and Irish Lions before becoming a legendary broadcaster. Johnnie Robbie also ran out for Cambridge, as the Irish scrum-half captained his side against the All Blacks and later became a British Lion in 1980

The All Blacks eventually ran out 32–12 winners, with the likes of captain Graham Mourie and world-class center Bruce Robertson leading the charge, in what made for a strong start to the tour at Grange Road. The match was played during a tour that contained a remarkable mixture of opposition. New Zealand would subsequently face Cardiff, West Wales, London Counties, Munster, Ulster, the South and South-West Counties, Midland Counties, Combined Services, Monmouthshire, North of England, North and Midlands of Scotland, Bridgend and the Barbarians, alongside their Tests against Ireland, Wales, England and Scotland.

For Cambridge, hosting the All Blacks was an opportunity to measure themselves against one of the strongest international sides in world rugby. For New Zealand, it was another important step on a tour that would eventually see them complete a Grand Slam of the Home Nations. It also remains the earliest fixture in this list — and the starting point for a fascinating journey through the history of New Zealand sides taking on club opposition.

Two years later, the All Blacks were back in Wales and were once again facing club opposition. This time, their opponents were Swansea RFC, one of the most famous clubs in Welsh rugby. The match formed part of New Zealand's 1980 tour of North America and Wales, with the tourists facing four clubs before completing the trip with a Test against Wales in Cardiff.

Swansea were unable to contain the All Blacks, despite having a star-studded ensemble of their own running out at St Helens. Welsh international legends Geoff Wheel, David Richards, and Richard Moriarty led the side, that also featured Roger Blyth and Malcolm Dacey in the back-line.

However, the All Blacks produced a dominant 32–0 victory at St Helen's. The result was part of a remarkable tour for New Zealand. They won all seven matches, scoring 197 points and conceding only 41 across the entire campaign. The Swansea fixture was particularly notable for its defensive authority. The home side failed to score as New Zealand kept them off the scoreboard throughout the 80 minutes.

It was also a reminder of the status Swansea held in the era. These were not meaningless warm-up fixtures. Welsh clubs were major forces, capable of attracting huge crowds and providing touring international sides with genuinely competitive tests. New Zealand's 32-point victory, however, left little doubt about the gulf between the two teams on that afternoon.

The 1989 All Blacks arrived in Britain and Ireland as one of the most formidable touring teams in world rugby. Newport were their next club challenge, and the Welsh side discovered just how difficult it was to contain New Zealand's attacking arsenal. The All Blacks produced a 54–9 victory at Rodney Parade, scoring eight tries in a performance that underlined the quality of Alex Wyllie's touring squad. With the likes of Buck Shelford, Zinzan Brooke, Grant Fox, John Gallagher, Terry Wright and Graeme Bachop, the odds were always going to be stacked against the future Dragons.

Warren Gatland even featured in the black jersey, in what was an early introduction to Welsh rugby for the hooker who would go on to be a legendary Wales head coach. The match was part of an unbeaten tour that also included fixtures against Cardiff, Pontypool, Swansea, Neath and Llanelli before the All Blacks moved into their international schedule. Newport's nine points were nowhere near enough to slow the tourists, who repeatedly found ways through the home defence.

For New Zealand, the fixture provided another opportunity to build momentum before the more demanding Tests against Wales and Ireland. For Newport, it was an occasion to measure themselves against one of the most powerful international sides of the period. The result has remained part of Newport's own history. The club's records still list the 54–9 defeat to the All Blacks among the results from its 1989/90 campaign. More than three decades later, it remains one of the clearest examples of the All Blacks' ability to overwhelm club opposition.

The 1993 trip to the Midlands of England was a very different affair. Rather than producing another runaway New Zealand victory, the match at Welford Road became a much tighter contest against an ensemble cast of Leicester Tigers legends. The All Blacks eventually prevailed 12–6, during their tour of England and Scotland.

Leicester were already an established force in English rugby, as the multi-time league champions made Welford Road a challenging environment, with marquee names handed to the Midlands side to face the tourists. New Zealand's victory was one of several tour-match successes before the All Blacks moved on to face England at Twickenham. The scoreline tells the story of a contest that was far more competitive than the 1980 and 1989 fixtures.

It also provides an interesting historical snapshot of New Zealand rugby. The squad included players who would become hugely influential figures in the All Blacks, with the likes of Sean Fitzpatrick, Zinzan Brooke and Jeff Wilson all apart of the touring party. The Leicester fixture formed part of a tour that saw New Zealand travel the length of the British Isle, facing off against the likes of Liverpool, Galashiels, Edinburgh, Gloucester and all the way south to a heavily Navy backed Plymouth side.

There was no eight-try demolition this time. Instead, the All Blacks had to grind out victory against a strong club side on their home ground — a useful reminder that touring New Zealand teams have not always had everything their own way against club opposition. Whilst the records on this match are patchy to say the least, the Leicester side of the early 90s boasted the likes of Richard Hill, Danny Grewcock and Rory Underwood, in what would have been an epic match up.

The most recent example is also the most relevant to tonight. In November 2024, the All Blacks XV travelled to Thomond Park to face Munster in front of a sold-out crowd of 26,267. Unlike the senior All Blacks that face the Stormers this evening, the All Blacks XV was New Zealand's second team, and an important pathway for players pushing towards Test selection.

What followed was one of the most entertaining recent meetings between New Zealand opposition and a club side. Munster repeatedly threatened to turn the match around and were within 26–24 with five minutes remaining. The home side had scored four tries and had the famous Thomond Park 'Red Army' crowd firmly behind them.

But the All Blacks XV finished the contest brutally. Kini Naholo crossed in the 75th minute before Harry Plummer intercepted a pass and scored with the final play, giving the visitors a 38–24 victory. New Zealand had scored six tries to Munster's four. The match also featured several players who have since become familiar names in New Zealand rugby, including Fabian Holland, Quinn Tupaea and Noah Hotham.