The All Blacks have named their squad to take on Namibia at the Rugby World Cup with management ringing in the changes to help combat a tough turnaround.
After beating Canada convincingly 63-0 in Oita just two days ago, Steve Hansen faced the difficult challenge of balancing the workloads and playing time of the entire squad with the clash against Namibia taking place this Sunday in Tokyo.
"In naming this team, we had to consider the short turnaround between the Canadian and Namibian games. We've managed to ensure that we've got plenty of fresh players starting this match," Hansen said.
Two big changes are at first-five and fullback, with the playmaking duo of Richie Mo'unga and Beauden Barrett rested for the match after both started in the first two Tests of the All Blacks' campaign.
In their place, Jordie Barrett slots in at the unfamiliar spot of first-five while veteran Ben Smith reclaims the No.15 jersey. Regular halfback TJ Perenara has been named as Barrett's cover on the bench with Brad Weber acting as the reserve to Aaron Smith.
The other big talking point is the inclusion of lock Brodie Retallick who has overcome his shoulder injury earlier than expected.
Retallick has been sidelined since July after he dislocated his shoulder in the All Blacks' 16-all draw with the Springboks and was expected to be unavailable until the knockout stages of the tournament.
However, with the injury less serious than it could've been and Retallick's rehab programme, the 28-year-old has recovered enough to test his fitness against world No.23 Namibia - the lowest ranked team at this year's World Cup.
"It's great to have Brodie back," Hansen said.
"There's been some great work done by not only Brodie himself but also by the medical team. Obviously, Brodie is very excited to be in a position to pull the jersey back on."
Sam Whitelock has been named to captain the side with Kieran Read rested for the match while Ardie Savea will take over Read's place in the line-up as the starting No.8 - his first start since announcing he'd play with protective goggles earlier this week.
The All Blacks play Namibia at 5:45pm NZT on Sunday.
More to come.
All Blacks
1. Joe Moody (42)
2. Codie Taylor (47)
3. Nepo Laulala (22)
4. Brodie Retallick (77)
5. Samuel Whitelock - captain (114)
6. Shannon Frizell (7)
7. Sam Cane (64)
8. Ardie Savea (41)
9. Aaron Smith (88)
10. Jordie Barrett (13)
11. George Bridge (6)
12. Anton Lienert-Brown (39)
13. Jack Goodhue (10)
14. Sevu Reece (4)
15. Ben Smith (82)
16. Dane Coles (65)
17. Ofa Tuungafasi (32)
18. Angus Ta'avao (10)
19. Patrick Tuipulotu (27)
20. Matt Todd (22)
21. Brad Weber (3)
22. T J Perenara (61)
23. Rieko Ioane (27)
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