All Blacks coach Ian Foster has made four changes to his line-up to face Australia in the Bledisloe Cup opener at Melbourne on Thursday.
With Shannon Frizell picking up a rib injury against Argentina and Ardie Savea on babywatch in New Zealand, Foster has been forced to tweak his loose forwards combination.
Lock Brodie Retallick returns to the starting XV, with Scott Barrett sliding across to the No.6 jersey and Hoskins Sotutu replacing Savea at the back of the scrum for his first test of the year. On the bench, Akira Ioane provides cover for the second row and loose forwards, while the backline remains unchanged.
After their 50-point drubbing of the Pumas, the All Blacks are now atop the Rugby Championship standings and showing signs that they may have turned a corner, after a horror run of six defeats in eight games.
Foster has largely kept faith with the players that have ridden that rollercoaster of public scrutiny, with captain Sam Cane securing his leadership with his best performance of the season against Argentina.
"We can't wait to kick off what should be a fantastic Rugby Championship test, which doubles as the opening Bledisloe Cup clash of the year," said All Blacks head coach Ian Foster. "We are incredibly driven to keep hold of this trophy which means so much to both countries.
"When you factor in how tight this year's Rugby Championship is, all signs point towards another great test match here in Melbourne."
The encounter has been scheduled for a Thursday to avoid clashing with Aussie Rules playoffs over the weekend.
All Blacks: 1-Ethan de Groot, 2-Samisoni Taukei'aho, 3-Tyrel Lomax, 4-Brodie Retallick, 5-Sam Whitelock, 6-Scott Barrett, 7-Sam Cane (c), 8-Hoskins Sotutu, 9-Aaron Smith, 10-Richie Mo'unga, 11-Caleb Clarke, 12-David Havili, 13-Rieko Ioane, 14-Will Jordan, 15-Jordie Barrett
Reserves: 16-Dane Coles, 17-George Bower, 18-Fletcher Newell, 19-Akira Ioane, 20-Dalton Papali'i, 21-Finlay Christie, 22-Beauden Barrett, 23-Quinn Tupaea
Join us at 9:45pm Thursday for live updates of the All Blacks v Australia Bledisloe Cup test
