Ireland celebrated a win for the history books after beating the All Blacks 29-20 in Dublin on Saturday, fighting back from a half-time deficit in a result that will boost their prospects heading towards the 2023 Rugby World Cup.
New Zealand-born James Lowe followed up his opening try against Japan last week with another breakthrough facing his birth nation, which proved to be just the beginning of an almost flawless performance from the Leinster wing.
Club team-mates Ronan Kelleher and Caelan Doris were also among Ireland's try-scorers, while Codie Taylor and Will Jordan crossed over on behalf of the travelling team.
Ireland came into Saturday's Autumn International on the back of their most competitive string of results against New Zealand, having won two of their past four fixtures against the All Blacks.
The first of those, a November Test staged in Chicago in 2016, marked Ireland's maiden win over the three-time world champions, and that sense of closer competition was apparent early on in Dublin.
A capacity crowd of more than 51,000 filled the Aviva Stadium on Saturday and urged the team even prior to kick-off, with a throaty chorus of 'The Fields of Athenry' crowding out New Zealand's haka.
If that didn't upset the hosts, Taylor's yellow card for a swinging arm in the tackle on Johnny Sexton will have, not to mention the Lowe try that followed swiftly after.
Andy Farrell's side showed the early intent by kicking to touch a man up, with Bundee Aki and Hugo Keenan helping to find Kiwi native Lowe out on the left in too much space not to dot down.
That cushion was almost immediately cut back to just two points following Jordie Barrett's penalty for a ruck infringement.
With first-choice hooker Taylor still off, New Zealand had to make another change when Beauden Barrett was forced off for a head injury assessment (HIA), though Richie Mo'unga made for a superb replacement.
The hosts continued to threaten even when their guests were replenished to a full 15, with Sexton marshalling matters even despite a slight scare when he went down grabbing his knee.
Tadhg Furlong barrelled over on the half-hour mark and briefly believed he'd doubled Ireland's points tally, only for play to be brought back for Kelleher's double movement in the build-up.
In typical New Zealand fashion, Ian Foster's side peeled off a line-out near the opposition's 22' to send Taylor searing towards the line, with the younger Barrett converting to put them 10-5 ahead at the half.
It was Kelleher's error that prevented an Irish try close to half-time, but the Leinster hooker made up for it after the restart when he barged his way over from short range under a mass of green bodies.
And momentum continued to roll in favour of the hosts when Caelan Doris—who was magnificent throughout Saturday's clash—broke free to score under the posts.
Sexton added the extras before converting a penalty to put Ireland 20-10 ahead, but Jordan chipped over Lowe on the far side to soar under and cut the deficit back to three points in another quick-fire response.
Joey Carbery replaced the Irish captain with 20 minutes to play and duly converted a penalty to restore a six-point lead.
New Zealand substitute Akira Ioane appeared to have put his side's noses back in front only for his score to be rubbed out due to a forward pass, setting the stage for a grandstand finish at the Aviva.
Munster out-half Carbery crushed another three-pointer from the halfway line after Lowe won a crucial penalty 50 metres out, sending the Dublin faithful into delirium as a major result moved within reach.
And Carbery pushed the hosts outside New Zealand's reach with one more penalty from in front of the posts for another infringement at the ruck, wrapping up the win with barely a minute left to play.
The Aviva erupted as their latest win over the All Blacks became a reality, with huge influence coming from their Kiwi-inspired trio of Lowe, Aki and scrum-half Jamison Gibson-Park.
New Zealand have another tall task on their hands next Saturday when they'll hope to wrap up their autumn tour with victory over France in Paris.
Ireland are set to host Argentina the following day when the Pumas will target their maiden win in Dublin.
