We had become so accustomed to this fixture that it is a shame it won’t be taking place later this year.
For the last three British & Irish Lions series cycles, Ireland has hosted the opposition team to Dublin for the November internationals.
In 2005, New Zealand came fresh from a 3-0 series win and handed Eddie O’Sullivan’s Ireland an almighty tonking – 45-7 with two tries apiece for Doug Howlett and Sitiveni Sivivatu.
Declan Kidney’s Grand Slam winners welcomed series winners South Africa to Croke Park in 2009 and defeated them 15-9 [pictured below]. Four years later, Australia lost the series 2-1 to the Lions but tore Joe Schmidt’s Ireland to shreds at the revamped Lansdowne Road.
In 2017, New Zealand will play four November internationals but a game against Ireland will not be on their playing schedule. The last time the IRFU missed out on such a money-spinner was in 2001 [Ireland played Samoa and New Zealand but not Australia].
The All Blacks will take on Warren Gatland’s Lions in a three-Test series this summer and head to Europe four months later for an end-of-season tour.
It was already known that they would play Wales and Scotland but Sydney Morning Herald is reporting that the third fully-fledged Test will be against France on November 11. New Zealand are likely to play a fourth time on the tour but, according to NZRU’s Steve Tew, it will not be against a Tier One nation.
Ireland played New Zealand in Chicago last November – winning 40-29 in a memorable clash – in a fixture outside of the agreed World Rugby international schedule but they are set to miss out this year.
An Ireland vs. New Zealand rematch at Soldier Field had reportedly been offered to the NZRU but was turned down.
The likelihood is the All Blacks taking on the Barbarians on November 4 at either Twickenham or the Millennium Stadium.
The marquee fixture will split profits 50/50 and could take in as much as £3m [€3.6m].
