1975
Venue: The Oval, England
Result: New Zealand (158) lost to the West Indies (159 for five) by five wickets
Sixty overs a side, white clothing, red balls, day games, only eight countries - it was World Cup cricket, but not as we know it.
In pool play, New Zealand had thrashed mighty East Africa, lost to England and beaten India. Glenn Turner scored centuries in both victories.
New Zealand was sent in to bat in the semifinal and had cruised to 98 for one, with Turner (36 from 74) and Geoff Howarth (51 from 93) batting steadily, if unspectacularly.Then came the big collapse - sound familiar? - and nine wickets fell for 60 runs.
Alvin Kallicharran (72) and Gordon Greenidge (55) anchored the successful run chase.
The West Indies went on to win the inaugural World Cup with a 17-run win over Australia in the final.
1979
Venue: Old Trafford, England
Result: England (221 for eight) beat New Zealand (212 for nine) by nine runs
Early wins over India (Bruce Edgar scoring 84 not out) and Sri Lanka (Turner scoring 83) again eased New Zealand's passage into the semifinals.
England was asked to bat and mosied through to 221 for eight, again off 60 overs.
Today, 221 would generally be considered a mediocre score off 50 overs. But it proved too much for the 1979 New Zealanders. John Wright opened with a scintillating 69 off 137 balls before he was run out, which turned the game.
The West Indies beat England in the final, with Viv Richards scoring a century and the Poms losing eight wickets for 11 runs.
1992
Venue: Eden Park, Auckland
Result: New Zealand (262 for seven) lost to Pakistan (264 for six) by four wickets
Inzamam.
1999
Venue: Old Trafford, England
Result: New Zealand (241 for seven) lost to Pakistan (242 for one) by nine wickets
The tournament was up to 12 teams and a strange new post-pool format called "Super Sixes" was introduced.
New Zealand shocked Australia in pool play and then qualified for the playoffs on net run rate after scoring 123 to beat Scotland inside 18 overs. The Black Caps then beat India to qualify for the semifinals.
A score of 241 wasn't bad, but Pakistan responded with a World Cup opening partnership record of 194. Saeed Anwar was there at the end on 113 not out.
New Zealand's unlikely star player was left-arm pace bowler Geoff Allott, who became the first bowler to take 20 wickets at a World Cup.
Australia, which had qualified on a tie after South Africa's monumental semifinal choke, easily beat Pakistan in the final.
2007
Venue: Sabina Park, Kingston
Result: Sri Lanka (289 for five) beat New Zealand (208) by 81 runs
Now 16 teams and up to "Super Eights". Expanding quicker than Super rugby.
The Black Caps beat England in pool play, and beat the West Indies and surprise teams Bangladesh and Ireland in the playoffs.
A five-wicket loss to Sri Lanka and a record 215-run loss (ouch) to Australia were split by a five-wicket win over South Africa, our World Cup bunny, to reach the semifinals.
Mahela Jayawardene scored a big century and New Zealand had to rely on a 59-run partnership for the 10th wicket between James Franklin and Jeetan Patel just to pass 200.
The New Zealand team included five players (Ross Taylor, Scott Styris, Jacob Oram, Brendon McCullum and Daniel Vettori) likely to start tonight.
Adam Gilchrist scored 149 as Australia won its third straight World Cup in 2007.
