Joe Biden appeared to confuse the Black and Tans and All Blacks during remarks made on his trip to Ireland.

Speaking in Louth, the US president paid tribute to his distant cousin and former Irish rugby player Rob Kearney.

Mr Biden thanked him for the tie he was wearing and referenced a match in Chicago, appearing to confuse the New Zealand team with the British security forces that fought IRA rebels in the 1919-21 war of independence from Britain.

“He beat the hell out of the Black and Tans,” Mr Biden said.