Te Karere – History of the Māori All Blacks: 1977 – Going, Going, Gone

By 2005, the Maori All Blacks has played 7 times over a 75 year time span. Despite being close in most matches, the tangata whenua are still yet to taste the sweet fruit of victory. Surely, this is will the Maori All Blacks best opportunity. All Blacks coach Sir Graham Henry releases eligible All Blacks for the fixture. The most successful coach for the Maori All Blacks, Matt Te Pou, is in charge.

After not getting a crack at the 1983 Lions, the Maori All Blacks get a chance against the 1993 tourists at Athletic Park. That team is led by Otago and All Black number 8 Arran Pene. The freakishly talented Zinzan Brook is also in the team. The Maori All Black burst out of the blocks they blow out to a 20 nil lead. Surely, the elusive victory against the mighty Lions is in the bag?

A record mid-week crowd of 53,000 rocks up to Eden Park to see the Maori ABS play the Lions for a 6th time, with the hosts still seeking that breakthrough win. Waka Nathan is now coach and he has stars of the calibre of Sid Going and Bill Osborne in his team. Unlike previous encounters, the Maori All Blacks build a big lead, but do they hang on?

The British Lions team that tours NZ in '71 will be just the second team in the history of NZ rugby to defeat the All Blacks in a test series at home. So how will the Maori All Blacks fare against such a formidable foe?

It's almost like groundhog day, another case of Djvu. Maori All Blacks versus the Lions. 55,000 passionate fans cram into Eden Park. The game is there for the taking, but will the Maori All Blacks seize the day? Waka Nathan again stars in the match, but he's also joined by another legend, first five-eight Mackie Herewini.

The 1959 encounter is played at a packed Eden Park in front of 45,000 fans. It's remembered as the most ill-tempered game on tour with the legendary Albie Pryor rarking up all and sundry. The fixture also sees the debut of a young player who would go on to become an All Black great: Waka Nathan, the loose forward they called the 'black panther'.

The second encounter between the Maori All Blacks and the Lions was in 1950. 40,000 fans pack into Athletic Park, Wellington for the mid week game. Like the first encounter 20 years before at the same ground, the tourists establish an early lead, only for the Maori to fight their way back into the game. But just before halftime, the Maori All Blacks chances are dashed when a key player is injured and they're forced to play the rest of the match with 14 men.

In this instalment, Maori rugby historian Malcolm Mullholand recounts the epic first clash in 1930 between the Maori All Blacks and the Lions. The Maori team's star selection is one of the greatest rugby players ever - George Nepia. The match is played in front of 25,000 fans at Athletic Park. After a dominant start by Great Britain, the Maori storm back into the game in the second half.

The countrys best known soap opera Shortland Street marks 25 years on the air on Thursday, and as the program has grown and evolved, so too has the use of Mori language, customs, and themes.