How it unfolded
Dave Gallaher's New Zealand Originals had not lost once on their British tour before this match, and had barely conceded. A crowd of 47,000 packed into Cardiff. When the New Zealanders began the haka, the crowd answered with a rendition of Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau ('Land of My Fathers') — recorded as the first time a national anthem was sung before a sporting fixture. Wales settled the match in the first half with a rehearsed set move: scrum-half Dicky Owen faked a long pass to the left to draw the defense, then sent the ball right through Cliff Pritchard and Rhys Gabe to winger Teddy Morgan, who dived over in the corner. The conversion missed, leaving the score at 3-0. In the second half, New Zealand's Bob Deans claimed he had grounded the ball over the line, but Scottish referee John Dallas, arriving late to the play, ruled that Welsh defenders had dragged him back before he scored, and disallowed the try. Deans cabled a London newspaper that evening insisting he had scored, and the dispute over the decision lasted more than a century. The Originals lost only this one match, finishing the tour with 34 wins from 35.
Why it still matters
This match shaped both nations' rugby identities at once. For Wales, it became the founding story proving rugby could carry a national narrative, and the tradition of singing anthems before kickoff traces to this day. For New Zealand, the team's only defeat and a disallowed try became a grievance that, if anything, reinforced the All Blacks' mythology.