Chance for All Blacks to go for four-peat

In 1996 the All Blacks beat South Africa four times in a row before the Springboks got one back at Ellis Park. Photo / Paul Estcourt

The All Blacks are on the eve of their 217th test since their first professional outing against Samoa in 1996.

Watching that volume of rugby tends to blur the memory a touch as the eyes play a few more tricks and the matches merge. Fortunately we are helped by the bulging archives of electronic, verbal and written information which fill in any gaps.

It helps when the question comes; how many times since rugby went professional have the All Blacks beaten a rival side four times in the same year?

You scratch your noggin. There have been plenty of times when the All Blacks have played teams three times in the same year. Who could forget the unbeaten 2005 series against the Lions or the twin victories then the crash and burn 2007 World Cup quarter-final defeat against France.

But four times in the same year and won the lot?

Cruden gets nod for All Blacks

Strictly that has happened only twice, in 2009 against the Wallabies and 2013 against France with the chance of another sequence set up against England at Twickenham on Sunday.

Back in 1996 the All Blacks beat the Springboks four times but they also lost another test against our greatest rival. Those were heady times as rugby bounced around in its professional infancy.

It's extraordinary to recall that half of the All Blacks' 10 tests that year were against South Africa as they duelled in five of their last six tests for the year.

They met at Lancaster Park, then Newlands, Kings Park, Loftus Versfeld and Ellis Park in a torrid sequence until the All Blacks could finally claim their first series victory in South Africa.

Watch: Hansen talks about the All Blacks XV to face England

The only respite for the sides came after Andrew Mehrtens kicked five penalties on his home track to give the All Blacks a 15-11 margin.

A detour through Brisbane was the interruption before the All Blacks won 29-18, 23-19 and then 33-26 at Loftus Versfeld to nail the series.

That was four in a row before the Boks retrieved some credit with a 32-22 win at Ellis Park.

We had to wait until 2008 for another four tests against the same side with all sorts of sub-plots as Robbie Deans moved his coaching talents to the Wallabies. Cripes, first game and the Yellow Devils waltzed home 34-19 in Sydney.

It was a false dawn for the Wallabies as they lost the other three tests that year and then all four in 2009. There was a single-point scrape in Sydney before the All Blacks iced the series with a 32-19 victory as the teams sushied in Tokyo.

The All Blacks' chokehold on the Aussies continued through 2010 with another one-point margin in Sydney before their luck ran out in Hong Kong with the concession of a final-minute converted try.

France were the last victim as the All Blacks struggled and shone in a variety of conditions last year.

The hosts were grateful at Eden Park when visiting No 8 Louis Picamoles dropped an awkward pass for a converted try to bring the charging tourists level with time almost up.

The All Blacks shut them out in Christchurch and held on for a 24-9 victory in a disjointed test in New Plymouth before the sides met for the final time in Paris.

It was a tough old scrap with the inventive spark of left wing Charles Piutau the difference in the 26-19 struggle.

Now for Twickers and the opportunity to slide the knife between England's ribs for the fourth time this season.

Forget the chat about any psychological edge for the World Cup next year. Strong teams tune their minds and focus to their next mission: Twickers is that target, nothing else.