Warning

This information was published in 1966 in An Encyclopaedia of New Zealand, edited by A. H. McLintock. It has not been corrected and will not be updated.

Up-to-date information can be found elsewhere in Te Ara.

The “All Black” Uniform

At some point between 1897 and 1901 there was a vital change, concerning which the records of the New Zealand Rugby Union are silent. But by 1901 the New Zealand team to meet New South Wales wore a black jersey (canvas top, no collar), silver fern (now neater and smaller), and black shorts and stockings. The “All Blacks” had arrived in fact, if not in name.

Co-creator

Alexander Hare McLintock, C.B.E., M.A., DIP.ED. (N.Z.), PH.D.(LOND.), Parliamentary Historian, Wellington.