On This Day
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New Zealand's All Blacks play their first rugby test match against Australia's Wallabies at the Sydney Cricket Ground, t

New Zealand's All Blacks play their first rugby test match against Australia's Wallabies at the Sydney Cricket Ground, the All Blacks win 22-3

The first clash in Rugby Union between Australia and New Zealand took place in a test match on 15 August 1903 in Sydney, New South Wales. On that occasion, New Zealand won 22–3.

Since 1931, the overall winner of the annual test matches (between one and three games in any given year) between the All Blacks and the Wallabies takes possession of the Bledisloe Cup, named after Lord Bledisloe, who donated the trophy.

Currently the rivalry is one the most played of any two international rugby union teams, and having played against each other 181 times, the All Blacks lead the series 128 to 45 with 8 draws between them and includes a large number of fixtures recorded for New Zealand as "XV" results.

Historical Significance

The first clash in Rugby Union between Australia and New Zealand took place in a test match on 15 August 1903 in Sydney, New South Wales.

Events Before

  1. 1st Rose Bowl, Tournament Park, Pasadena, California: Michigan defeats Stanford 49-0; MVP: Michigan fullback Neil Snow

    1st Rose Bowl, Tournament Park, Pasadena, California: Michigan defeats Stanford 49-0; MVP: Michigan fullback Neil Snow

  2. Abdulaziz Ibn Saud leads 40 men over the walls of Riyadh and takes the city, beginning the Third Saudi State

    Abdulaziz Ibn Saud leads 40 men over the walls of Riyadh and takes the city, beginning the Third Saudi State

  3. Britain and Japan sign a treaty after months of negotiating which commits each country to supporting an independent Chin

    Britain and Japan sign a treaty after months of negotiating which commits each country to supporting an independent China and Korea, although it acknowledges Japan's 'special interest' in Korea

  4. US military leader George Marshall (22) weds Elizabeth Carter Coles in San Antonio, Texas

    George Catlett Marshall Jr. (31 December 1880 – 16 October 1959) was an American army officer and statesman. He rose through the United States Army to become Chief of Staff of the U.S.

  5. American Automobile Association (AAA) is founded in Chicago

    American Automobile Association (AAA) is a federation of motor clubs throughout North America.

Events After

  1. James Longstreet dies

    James Longstreet, Confederate confederate army general, known for confederate army general, died on 1904-01-02.

  2. The Dutch East Indies government takes control of opium distribution

    The Dutch East Indies, also known as the Netherlands East Indies, was a Dutch colony with territory mostly comprising the modern state of Indonesia, which declared independence on 17 August 1945.

  3. Future German Chancellor Konrad Adenauer (28) weds Emma Weyer at St. Stephan Catholic Church in Lindenthal, Germany, unt

    Future German Chancellor Konrad Adenauer (28) weds Emma Weyer at St. Stephan Catholic Church in Lindenthal, Germany, until her death in 1916

  4. Japanese torpedo boats launch a surprise attack on Russian ships at the Port Arthur naval base in Manchuria, beginning t

    Japanese torpedo boats launch a surprise attack on Russian ships at the Port Arthur naval base in Manchuria, beginning the Russo-Japanese War. Japanese troops also land at Chemulpo (Incheon), near Seoul, Korea; in three weeks, they advance to the Yalu River, the border of Manchuria.

  5. Giacomo Puccini's opera "Madama Butterfly" premieres at La Scala in Milan, Italy

    Madama Butterfly is an opera in three acts (originally two) by Giacomo Puccini, with an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa.

More from the 1900s

First Powered Flight by the Wright Brothers

Orville and Wilbur Wright make the first controlled, sustained flight of a powered, heavier-than-air aircraft near Kitty Hawk, North Carolina.

science technology

Conference of 23 industrial trade unionists in Chicago, Illinois, issues the Industrial Union Manifesto, calling for a c

Conference of 23 industrial trade unionists in Chicago, Illinois, issues the Industrial Union Manifesto, calling for a convention in Chicago in June and laying the groundwork for the formation of the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW)

death

James Longstreet dies

James Longstreet, Confederate confederate army general, known for confederate army general, died on 1904-01-02.

1st Rose Bowl, Tournament Park, Pasadena, California: Michigan defeats Stanford 49-0; MVP: Michigan fullback Neil Snow

1st Rose Bowl, Tournament Park, Pasadena, California: Michigan defeats Stanford 49-0; MVP: Michigan fullback Neil Snow

Frequently Asked Questions

What happened on August 15, 1903?
The first clash in Rugby Union between Australia and New Zealand took place in a test match on 15 August 1903 in Sydney, New South Wales. On that occasion, New Zealand won 22–3. Since 1931, the overall winner of the annual test matches (between one and three games in any given year) between the All Blacks and the Wallabies takes possession of the Bledisloe Cup, named after Lord Bledisloe, who donated the trophy.
Why is New Zealand's All Blacks play their first rugby test match against Australia'... significant?
The first clash in Rugby Union between Australia and New Zealand took place in a test match on 15 August 1903 in Sydney, New South Wales.

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August 15 in HistoryYear 1903