With the Rugby Championship and Bledisloe Cup both locked away, fringe All Blacks have one last chance to book their tickets to France for this year's World Cup.
Saturday's 38-7 victory against the Wallabies at the Melbourne Cricket Ground means next weekend's return fixture in Dunedin is a dead rubber for coach Ian Foster, with no consequences tied to the result.
However, next weekend's encounter will be the final test match to be played before Foster and his fellow selectors name their 33-man contingent to head to the World Cup.
At the start of the season, Foster named five uncapped players in his first squad of the year, before adding a sixth in the shape of Shaun Stevenson.
In the first three tests of the year, half of those uncapped players have been afforded test debuts - Emoni Narawa against Argentina, Tamaiti Williams against South Africa and Cam Roigard against Australia.
But, with one final test before selection, Stevenson along with Chiefs teammate Samipeni Finau and Crusaders utility back Dallas McLeod are yet to take the field for the All Blacks.
And with the job done in Melbourne, Foster made no bones of the fact Dunedin will see him shuffle his deck.
"We love the word 'dead rubber' from one perspective, it means we've done the job in the first test," said Foster. "But that doesn't change the fact it's still a test match.
"It's a vital cog on our little step for the World Cup. It's our chance for us to have a look at a few options - both in the way we play, and personnel.
"I think it's fair to say you'll see a couple of changes. [You'll have to] wait and see."
With a World Cup looming, pressure will naturally be on fringe All Blacks to stand up when it counts.
While most of the squad is locked in, there is still opportunity for players to play their way in - or even out - of Foster's plans.
But, as far as the coach is concerned, what's to come in the rest of the year won't be front and centre throughout the upcoming week.
"I probably won't mention it, but they know it," Foster continued.
"Our focus will go on this performance, but we'd be foolish to think it wasn't on peoples' minds.
"That's part of the excitement."
Meanwhile, Foster assured that no risk will be taken over captain Sam Cane.
Cane, 31, missed Saturday's win after a neck injury suffered against South Africa two weeks ago.
But while his absence was precautionary, Foster is reticent to put his skipper in harm's way in a game with nothing riding on it.
"He's pretty good," Foster updated. "We might do a bit of testing with him earlier in the week.
"Quite frankly, we won't be taking any risk there. If we don't really think it's right, he won't be playing.
"He's progressed well in the week, so we'll make that decision tomorrow."
The All Blacks' squad for the Rugby World Cup will be announced on August 7, with 33 players to be selected to head to France.
