The Original All Blacks - Name

Name

The team departed New Zealand as the New Zealand Football Team, or, simply The New Zealanders, though names such as Maorilanders and Colonials were also applied. Reference to the team by the name "All Blacks" first appeared during the Originals tour when, according to Billy Wallace, a London newspaper reported that the New Zealanders played as if they were "all backs". Wallace claimed that due to a typographical error, subsequent references were to "All Blacks". Wallace was the last of the Originals to pass away, so this explanation for the name's origins is widely believed. However, the Express and Echo in Devon, reporting after the Originals match there, referred to "The All Blacks, as they are styled by reason of their sable and unrelieved costume." The new name quickly became popular throughout Britain, though its acceptance into popular culture took a longer time back home in New Zealand. On 5 March when the team returned home, the Herald acclaimed the "New Zealand Footballers", however, the following day its report of the official function was headed "Return of the All Blacks".