KEY POINTS:
CAPE TOWN - Newlands in Cape Town has produced the most wins for the All Blacks among South African rugby venues and the local support they get here might be one reason.
A significant number of the capacity 49,000 crowd expected at the ground for the Tri-Nations test on Sunday morning (NZT) will be cheering on not the home side, but the visitors.
Most of those fans will come from sections of the Western Cape's coloured community and the issue is an emotional one, at times arousing accusations of treason.
Springbok coach Peter de Villier this week backed the right of South Africans to barrack for whichever team they wanted.
"I don't care who you support," he said.
"As long as you are a great citizen of this country, you can support whoever you like. Just don't kill people."
Backing the All Blacks dates back to the apartheid era, when coloureds and blacks saw the-then all-white Springbok team as a symbol of their oppression.
Since the birth of the Rainbow Nation, things have changed, and one of the abiding images of the 1995 World Cup final New Zealand lost in Johannesburg was of President Nelson Mandela walking on to Ellis Park in a Springbok jersey.
However, the All Blacks' popularity endures in parts of South Africa, and beyond.
Sports journalist Yusuf Jackson said it was at its strongest in and around Cape Town, which had a large concentration of coloured people, and thus large numbers of coloured rugby players.
"One of the reasons is they enjoy the brand of rugby the All Blacks play," he said.
"The All Blacks play the brand of rugby that coloured people play."
Assistant coach Wayne Smith was well aware of the amount of pro-All Black sentiment among locals.
"I love it," he said.
"I met a guy last night I've known for a number of years and who helped to form the Namibia All Black Supporters Club and they're coming down from Namibia for the game.
"It's great. To have support away from home is pretty healthy for us."
Since their first visit to Cape Town 80 years ago, the All Blacks have amassed five wins over the Springboks, along with three defeats.
Their next most plentiful hunting ground is Pretoria, where they have had four wins and a loss.
New Zealand test results against South Africa at New lands in Cape Town:
1928 - NZ 13 South Africa 5
1949 - South Africa 15 NZ 11
1960 - NZ 11 South Africa 3
1970 - NZ 9 South Africa 8
1976 - South Africa 15 NZ 10
1996 - NZ 29 South Africa 18
2001 - NZ 12 South Africa 3
2005 - South Africa 22 NZ 16
Also:
1995 World Cup - NZ 45 England 29
- NZPA
