All Blacks Coach Graham Henry and his Assistant Coaches Steve Hansen and Wayne Smith have named their team for the first Bledisloe Cup Test against the Wallabies in the Tri Nations at Etihad Stadium, Melbourne, on Saturday 31 July. (Kick off: 8.05pm Aus Time)
The starting XV features just two changes to the side which beat South Africa 31-17 in Wellington ten days ago.
Jimmy Cowan will start at halfback with Piri Weepu on the bench and Josevata Rokocoko, who missed selection in the last Test with a hamstring strain, returns to the left wing in what will be a significant milestone for the All Blacks winger – he will play in his 64th Test and move ahead of All Blacks greats John Kirwan and Jonah Lomu as the most capped All Blacks winger of all time.
Meanwhile, Tony Woodcock who is playing in his 66th Test this weekend joins his former teammate Greg Somerville as the most capped prop in All Blacks history.
As well as Weepu, the other change on the bench from the last All Blacks Test sees flanker Victor Vito cover the loose forwards.
The All Blacks side boasts a wealth of experience with 700 Test caps in the starting XV, led by captain Richie McCaw and fullback Mils Muliaina – who celebrates his 30th birthday on Saturday – who will be playing their 86th Tests.
“We will need all our experience up against what is a very good Wallabies side,” Henry said.
“We have had a good start to the Tri Nations with the two wins over South Africa but there is no room for complacency – we are playing our oldest rivals for one of our most prized trophies, the Bledisloe Cup, and both sides will come out firing.”
The All Blacks rivalry against Australia stretches back 107 years to 1903. Since then the two countries have played each other 136 times, with 92 wins to the All Blacks, 39 to Australia and five draws.
The All Blacks first played in Melbourne in 1926 against Victoria but have played just three Tests against Australia in the city with the last Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in 2007.
The All Blacks also played three Tests at Etihad Stadium (then Telstra Dome) against South Africa, Canada and Italy at the 2003 Rugby World Cup.
All Blacks team
(Number of Test caps in brackets)
1. Tony Woodcock (65) , 2. Keven Mealamu (76) , 3. Owen Franks (14) , 4. Brad Thorn (42) , 5. Tom Donnelly (9) , 6. Jerome Kaino (29) , 7. Richie McCaw – captain (85) , 8. Kieran Read (21) , 9. Jimmy Cowan (38) , 10. Daniel Carter (71) , 11. Josevata Rokocoko (63) , 12. Ma’a Nonu (48) , 13. Conrad Smith (37) , 14. Cory Jane (17) , 15. Mils Muliaina (85)
Replacements: 16. Corey Flynn (9) , 17. Ben Franks (4) , 18. Samuel Whitelock (5) , 19. Victor Vito (2) , 20. Piri Weepu (40) , 21. Aaron Cruden (4) , 22. Israel Dagg (3)