The All Blacks are heading into their Rugby World Cup pool match against Namibia with a challenge from management to "prove themselves" after having their campaign derailed by back-to-back heavy losses.
Coach Ian Foster made 10 changes [including one positional] to the starting XV for tomorrow's Test in Toulouse following their 27-13 loss to France last week.
But the squad does feature some first-string options still looking to find their feet in France including starting fullback Beauden Barrett and prop Ethan de Groot, who has been named on the bench for the contest.
All Blacks defence coach Scott McLeod said Namibia provides a good opportunity for players to push their cases to either earn a starting spot going forward or retain it.
"The World Cup is about a whole squad and we've got to give people an opportunity to prove themselves," he said.
"As it has been recognised, the last two results haven't been how we wanted to go so we're giving people an opportunity to put their hand up."
Much of that boils down to the All Blacks going back to basics and doing them well while keeping the penalty count down - something that has been heavily-discussed all week by Foster and other players.
But there's also the added dimension of a strong mental game, with the All Blacks now in the unfamiliar territory of facing must-win games in pool play to keep their tournament alive.
Loose forward Luke Jacobson said the team isn't fazed by the situation though.
"I don't think it adds extra pressure," he said. "We know we need to be winning to win this competition regardless so I don't think a whole lot changes from now."
All Blacks midfielder Anton Lienert-Brown, named to start tomorrow alongside his Chiefs teammate, said there's been a focus on mental strength and resilience, especially given their recent form and results.
"It's incredibly important as an athlete in any sport that you should be putting time into your mind and it's something the All Blacks have done for a long time," Lienert-Brown said.
"The last couple of games have been disappointing for us and we've got to make shifts in our game and get better but we've stuck really tight as a group. Every individual has their own way of how they deal with losses and pressure but then we've also got our support groups around us.
"If you turn up every day and you're driven to get better, then those small increments are going to add up to something good so that's what we're focusing on at the moment."
That step-by-step process has been big for Lienert-Brown in 2023 after coming back from an ankle injury in the opening round of this year's Super Rugby Pacific competition to make All Blacks selection.
"I think our objective at the moment is to take it one week at a time and get better over these next three games," he added.
"At the end of the day, you just need to get yourself to a quarterfinal and you're in to knockout rugby... anything can happen from there."
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