December 2, 1905: New Zealand's Rugby "All Blacks" Stun England

December 2, 1905: Great Britain, and England in particular, get a lesson they will not soon forget: Their island is not the only place where great rugby is played.

Rugby was allegedly invented at the prep school of the same name in England's Midlands in 1823. Wales began playing it in 1850, the Welsh Rugby Union was formed in 1881, and the Home Nations Championship, between Wales, England, Scotland and Ireland was first played 2 years later. (France was added in 1910, making it the Five Nations Championship. In 2000, Italy was added, making it the Six Nations Championship.)

The sport was first played in New Zealand in 1870. By 1904, New Zealand was sending its national team on tour. Because of their all-black uniforms, they became known as the All Blacks. (The soccer team eventually became known as the All Whites, and their cricket team as the Black Caps.)

The Original All Blacks, also known simply as "The Originals," were the first New Zealand team to tour outside Australasia. Managed by George Dixon, coached by Jimmy Duncan, and captained by Dave Gallaher, they toured the British Isles, France and the United States during 1905–1906.

Their opening game, on September 16, 1905, was against Devon, in England's West Country, whom they defeated 55–4. They defeated every English side that they faced, including a 16–3 victory over English county champions Durham in the North-East, and a 32–0 victory over Blackheath in South-East London.

On December 2, they played the England national team, at the Crystal Palace stadium in South-East London (not to be confused with Selhurst Park, home of the current version of Crystal Palace F.C.), and won, 15-0, stunning the entire British Empire.

Two weeks later, they played the national team of Wales, in a match that became known as the sport's Match of the Century.

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December 2, 1905 was a Saturday. Baseball was out of season. Basketball barely existed. And hockey was mostly amateur at this point. There was 1 college football game that day: The Army-Navy Game ended in a 6-6 tie, played at Osborne Field on the campus of Princeton University in Princeton, New Jersey.

And in English soccer, Woolwich Arsenal, one day to become the North London team I would support, beat Manchester City, 2-0 at the Manor Ground in Plumstead, South-East London.