The All Blacks are staring down the possibility of a previously-unimagined low in rugby's world rankings.
World Rugby has revealed that if the New Zealand side suffers another defeat to Argentina in Hamilton on Saturday it could drop to as low as seventh on the ladder of international rugby teams and be battling with the likes of Scotland and Wales for elite legitimacy.
The All Blacks have rarely before suffered a prolonged run of results quite like the sequence that began last November with the 29-20 loss to Ireland.
That defeat in Dublin was followed by another in Paris, two in July this year and two more in August to leave the All Blacks in the unprecedented position of having just two wins from their last eight tests.
"Argentina will be the higher-ranked of the two teams if they secure back-to-back wins over New Zealand, climbing to fifth and condemning the All Blacks to a new low of sixth. Los Pumas have not been ranked as high as sixth since June 2016," World Rugby said in its latest rankings preview ahead of Rugby Championship's fourth round.