New Delhi: A 110-year-old jersey worn by legendary New Zealand captain Dave Gallaher during the 1905 tour of the British Isles has fetched a record £180,000 at an auction on Saturday in Cardiff.


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The jersey was expected to fetch £20,000 to £40,000 but it smashed all predictions when it was bought by a buyer was based in the United Kingdom, who bid over the phone.



According to reports, the 'Originals' skipper Gallaher swapped the jersey with Wales captain Gwyn Nicholls after a match.


Nicholls took the All Blacks shirt to his family laundry business in Cardiff before giving it to his rugby-mad van boy Thomas Mahoney, whose family have kept it for generations until it went up for auction.


This is the highest ever price for a rugby shirt, breaking the previous record of £22,000, also for a New Zealand shirt worn during the same Originals tour and which was kept at a local rugby club in South Wales.


Gallaher is often regarded as the father of All Blacks, probably the most dominant team in the sports. A bronze statue of Gallaher was unveiled outside the home of New Zealand rugby, Eden Park, in 2011.



Born in Ramelton, Ireland, Gallaher migrated to New Zealand with his family as a small child. He died in 1917 in Belgium from a shrapnel wound at the age of 43, while serving in First World War. He had previously took part in the Anglo-Boer War.


Meanwhile, All Blacks have qualified for the quater-finals in the ongoing 2015 Rugby World Cup in England. In their final Group C match, two-time winners beat Tonga 49-7. They have beaten Georgia, Namibia and Argentina in the five-team group.