All Blacks captain Ardie Savea returns to the side after some time off.
All Blacks head coach Dave Rennie has named a powerful match-day 23 for Saturday’s series opener against the Springboks at Ellis Park (kickoff 5.10pm), welcoming key stars back into the fold for their first appearances of the tour.
Ardie Savea returns to captain the side from No 8, headlining a reshuffled back row alongside Luke Jacobson and Tupou Vaa’i.
Up front, the front-row unit of Ethan de Groot, Codie Taylor, and Tyrel Lomax brings 203 Test caps of set-piece experience to combat the powerful Springbok scrum, while Josh Lord and Fabian Holland form an athletic second-row pairing.
At halfback, Cam Roigard makes his tour debut alongside flyhalf Ruben Love. Jordie Barrett and Quinn Tupaea pair up in midfield, while the back three features lethal firepower. Will Jordan makes his tour bow on the right wing opposite Josh Moorby, with Damian McKenzie slotting in at fullback to provide counter-attacking spark.
