| A nation obsessed by rugby, New Zealand's passion for this great sport is mirrored by its players performances on the pitch, as they are currently ranked number one in the world by the International Rugby Board.
The All Blacks have dominated the Tri Nations Results in recent years, winning the past three Championships, losing just three times in the past fourteen meetings against Southern Hemisphere rivals Australia and South Africa.
Many supporters would argue that New Zealand are an unstoppable unit and should have no trouble in winning the Tri Nations Championship for the fourth consecutive year in 2008 as the team appears to go from strength to strength. However, the manner of defeat in the 2007 Rugby Union World Cup Quarter Final at the hands of France showed chinks in the famous All Black armour. France came from behind to win the game, spelling the worst ever All Blacks performance at a world cup. The odds-on Rugby Betting favourites had yet again failed to win a world cup game when it mattered and the Webb Ellis Cup eluded them yet again since winning it for the only time on home soil twenty years ago, their next chance will come in 2011 when they play hosts once again.
Head Coach Graham Henry was sacked as a result of failing to win in France and the All Blacks will play in the 2008 Tri Nations Championship Fixtures under a new regime, something that is sure to provide much optimism for the Wallabies and Springboks as they look to put an end to New Zealand's Tri Nations Supremacy. The Australian media were quick to taunt the All Black's early exit from the World Cup claiming that they "choked", this banter only hightens the rivalry between the two coutnries and will fuel the fire for what is sure to be an explosive clash when the two meet to contest the Bledisloe Cup during the 2008 Tri Nations Championships.
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