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The 2020 Bledisloe Cup will be a four-Test series played from October to November in Australia and New Zealand. Game 2 at Eden Park was won 27-7 by the All Blacks after the first match of the series finished in a 16-all draw.
Originally postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Bledisloe Cup will comprise four Tests in 2020, two standalone matches played in New Zealand in October, and a further two to be hosted in Australia – the first in Sydney, the second in Brisbane – which will double as Rugby Championship fixtures.
The first two Tests of the series were played in New Zealand on consecutive Sunday afternoons; Game 1 at Wellington’s Sky Stadium on October 11 finished in a 16-all draw, before Game 2 a week later at Eden Park was won by 20 points by the All Blacks.
Game 3 will take place at ANZ Stadium on October 31, while Game 4 will be played at Brisbane’s Suncorp Stadium on November 7.
Originally, Australia was set to host the first and third Bledisloe Cup Tests in 2020. Due to both major rectangular stadiums in Sydney undergoing redevelopment, neither would be played there.
Instead, Melbourne’s Marvel Stadium was due to host the series opener on August 8, while Brisbane’s Suncorp Stadium was supposed host the third Test on October 17. The second Test would have been played at the newly-named Sky Stadium in Wellington. After losing this year’s Test, Melbourne will instead play home to a Bledisloe Cup encounter in 2021.
2019 Bledisloe Cup results
The 2019 series was reduced to two matches to accommodate the upcoming Rugby World Cup, and while Australia were victorious first up, a drawn 1-1 series saw the cup revert to the reigning champs.
Date
Fixture
Venue
Sat Aug 10
Australia 47 def. New Zealand 26
Optus Stadium
Sat Aug 17
New Zealand 36 def. Australia 0
Eden Park
Recent series
2018
The 2018 series was claimed by New Zealand, after they won the first two matches in convincing fashion.
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The third match – also won by the All Blacks – was played in Yokohama, just outside Tokyo. The match gave both teams an opportunity to experience conditions in Japan ahead of the 2019 Rugby World Cup, which was the first such tournament to be held in Asia.
Date
Fixture
Venue
Sat Aug 18
Australia 12 def. by New Zealand 40
ANZ Stadium
Sat Aug 25
New Zealand 38 def. Australia 13
Eden Park
Sat Oct 27
New Zealand 37 def. Australia 20
Nissan Stadium (Yokohama)
2017
The All Blacks won the first two Tests and thus the Bledisloe Cup for a 15th consecutive year, defeating the Wallabies 54-34 in Sydney, and 35-29 in Dunedin.
The third and final game was played in Australia following the conclusion of the Rugby Championship and saw the Wallabies get a dead rubber victory.
