After months of hype and hoopla, the 2005 British and Irish Lions are about to find out if the power base in world rugby really has switched to the northern hemisphere.
England's victory in the 2003 World Cup was expected to herald a new era in a game traditionally dominated by New Zealand, Australia and South Africa. But only a victory by the Lions in the test series against the All Blacks over the next three weeks will underline that a seismic switch in the game at international level has taken place.
Winning a test series against the All Blacks on their home turf is one of the most elusive and demanding tasks in world rugby. Only once in the 101 year history of Lions' visits to New Zealand have the tourists managed to secure a series victory. That Lions team, led by John Dawes in 1971, was blessed with some of the greatest names in rugby history - Barry John, JPR Williams, Willie John McBride and Mike Gibson - but still only won the series 2-1 with one match drawn.
Now Ireland's Brian O'Driscoll and his fellow Lions of 2005 have a chance to emulate that success but they face an All Blacks side that is relishing the prospect of taking on the best of Britain and Ireland's players. The meticulous, almost scientific, preparation of the Lions squad for New Zealand will face its most searching test in the brutal intensity of the three test matches in Christchurch, Wellington and Auckland.
The team that Sir Clive Woodward has chosen for tomorrow's first test has already provoked much controversy, relying as he has on the backbone of an England team that has been in decline since their World Cup success. The outstanding Six Nations form of Wales has been put to one side in favour of reputation.
If the pressure on the Lions and Woodward is immense, it pales compared to the expectation in New Zealand that the All Blacks should not alone win the series but do so with a whitewash. That overconfidence could be the All Blacks' undoing. For all their fearsome reputation, they have failed in the last four World Cups to capture the sport's most coveted prize.
The 22 players in the Lions panel for tomorrow's opening test - including four Irish internationals - will be acutely aware of the enormous challenge of facing the most famous jersey in world rugby on their home patch. But they will be conscious also that this is a chance to write their names into rugby folklore. That alone will not be enough to beat the New Zealanders but it should provide an enormous incentive to confound the pundits and bookmakers. Let battle commence.