In 1988 the Kiwis faced the Kangaroos in the World Cup final at Eden Park. The New Zealand team featured some of the biggest names of 1980s league - Mark Graham, Dean Bell, Kurt Sorensen, Gary Freeman, Clayton Friend and Kevin Iro.
They were labelled favourites, partly because of their upset 13-6 victory at Lang Park in 1987, achieved without Graham or Sorensen.
Meanwhile the Kangaroos played down their chances in the lead-up, despite a team including Wally Lewis, Allan Langer, Michael O'Connor and Paul Sironen. It was the biggest league match ever staged in this country and the hype was through the roof as 47,000 fans packed into Eden Park.
The Kiwis didn't handle the occasion well and the Australians took full advantage, killing off the game by halftime leading 21-0. The home side weren't helped by Papua New Guinean referee Graham Ainui, who seemed overawed by the Australian stars. Tries to the Iro brothers for a final score of 25-12 were scant consolation and the result was recognised as a major setback for the code.
Eleven years later New Zealand hosted the Tri-Nations tournament. In the first match Frank Endacott's team beat Australia 24-22, producing what Endacott called the best 40 minutes of his tenure as they led 24-4 at halftime.
When the two teams met in the final at Mt Smart three weeks later, the Kiwis were strongly favoured. They boasted Henry and Robbie Paul, Richie Barnett, Nigel Vagana and Stephen Kearney, though Stacey Jones was out through injury.
"It was a bit of a hard luck story," says Endacott. "I still believe we were the better team in the final ... It was a great game but winning it would have been a major boost for the sport."
The Kiwis had four tries disallowed by the video referee - two decisions particularly hard to understand then or now - and lost 22-20.
In Wellington tonight the Kiwis will also need to overcome another historical hex, looking for consecutive victories over Australia for just the second time since 1953. On every other occasion after a famous Kiwis win, the Kangaroos have bounced back immediately in the next encounter, often with savage consequences.
"We can't get too caught up in the history," said Kiwis vice-captain Kieran Foran. "We just need to focus on ourselves and make sure we produce another big performance."
"I'm pretty confident if the guys put their best foot forward, like we saw in Brisbane," said Jones. "This looks like a special team."
