Dominant All Blacks justify record 1-1000 odds

Rugby Union - Rugby World Cup 2019 - Pool B - New Zealand v Namibia - Tokyo Stadium, Tokyo, Japan - October 6, 2019 New Zealand's Sevu Reece and Namibia's Janco Venter during a lineout REUTERS/Issei Kato

TOKYO (Reuters) - Double-defending champions New Zealand lined up to face Namibia in what bookmakers rated the biggest mismatch in rugby history on Sunday - and duly justified the 1,000-1 ON odds by hammering the African part-timers 71-9.

New Zealand went into the Pool B game having never lost in the group stages and unbeaten since the 2007 quarter-finals, while Namibia had never won a Rugby World Cup match in 21 attempts - their last victory over a Tier One nation coming when they beat a touring Ireland side in 1991.