Did Jacinda Ardern 'curse' the All Blacks?

Could Jacinda Ardern be a bad omen for the All Blacks? Photo Phil Walter/Getty Images

There will be many excuses offered up for the All Blacks being dumped in Brisbane - and as silly as it sounds, don't be surprised at some tongue-in-cheek finger-pointing at the changing face of our Government.

A few such "jokes" circulated on social media after the game.

And in the lead-up to the clash against the Wallabies at Brisbane's Suncorp Stadium - won 23-18 by the Aussies - the Herald printed 'Five reasons to worry' about the All Blacks' hopes against their trans-Tasman foes in the third and final Bledisloe Cup clash.

Four were rugby based. The fifth was a light-hearted mention of Jacinda Ardern's pending swearing in as Prime Minister.

The basis was the All Blacks' past woes while the country has a female PM.

It read: "Bear with us here ... the first time New Zealand had a female prime minister was when Jenny Shipley was in power between 1997-99 and in 1998, the All Blacks went through one of their worst losing streaks in history when dropping five tests in a row, culimnating in a horrible (for them) 19-14 loss to the Wallabies in Sydney.

"Coincidence? We hope so. The Aussies might disagree and see it as an omen."

An omen? In fact the All Blacks were simply out-played by the Wallabies.

Thankfully the All Blacks already had the Bledisloe Cup wrapped up for the summer regardless of the result of the test.

But in two years time they will be on a mission to make sure they can blow away one lasting legacy in their history while New Zealand has had a female Prime Minister.

They have never won a World Cup while we have had a female politician on the top floor of the Beehive.

The ABs have bombed out of World Cups while Dame Jenny Shipley and Helen Clark have been PM.

Here's hoping the men and black can change that when they head to Japan to defend their crown in Japan in 2019.