Cheating, national scandal, timekeeping disasters and spine-tingling drama have long defined the historic rugby union rivalry between Wales and New Zealand.
Since the famous 1905 Match of the Century, which gave rise to the tradition of singing national anthems before sports events, the two nations have battled fiercely.
Wales may have won three of the first four meetings, but a lengthening losing run has persisted since 1953.
Cardiff in 1978 hosted what was as close to a World Cup final as the time allowed, coming after an infamous late-night incident involving Keith Murdoch, “who was sent home in disgrace” according to BBC News.
In 1978, Graham Mourie tourists scored the game’s only try, but Wales dominated and led 12-10 as the clock ticked toward the final minute.
Andy Haden later wrote in his autobiography that the All Blacks hatched a plan to cheat, noting that he told his locking partner he was going to dive.
Referee Roger Quittenton of England awarded a penalty after Haden catapulted out of the line-out, allowing Brian McKechnie to land the winning points.
Bobby Windsor described the game as the worst day of his career, stating, “I knew straight away that it was a con job” per historical archives.
It would take 26 years until Wales came as close to ending the losing run, playing with abandon under new head coach Mike Ruddock and leading at half-time “through tries by Tom Shanklin and Mefin Davies” according to BBC Sport.
New Zealand responded with two wonderful solo tries from Joe Rokocoko, while Wales suffered from disastrous timekeeping that halted a potential shock victory.
Regarding pre-match traditions, the 1905 Welsh crowd singing Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau marked the first time a national anthem was sung “before an international sports event” according to BBC Wales.
A century later, an attempted Welsh Rugby Union response to the Haka backfired disastrously when officials asked the All Blacks to perform the ritual before the home anthem.
Former prop Adam Jones noted “the incident ensured they wanted to destroy us” per ESPN reporting.