Bledisloe Cup: Sam Cane becomes 13th All Blacks centurion while ...

Sam Cane will become the 13th player to play 100 Test matches for the All Blacks on Saturday after being named in the starting XV to face Australia.

The former skipper debuted for New Zealand in 2012 against Ireland and was selected in Sir Steve Hansen’s All Blacks squad for the 2015 Rugby World Cup, where he captained his country for the first time against Namibia – going on to lead the side on 27 more occasions.

All Blacks boss Scott Robertson has named Cane in the number seven jumper for the fourth straight Test as New Zealand look to finish their Rugby Championship campaign on a high.

Meanwhile, Robertson has made further changes to his matchday 23 that defeated Australia last time out to defend the Bledisloe Cup.

Beauden Barrett returns to the side after missing the previous clash through illness and is selected at fly-half, while Anton Lienert-Brown comes into the starting XV following the injury to Jordie Barrett.

The older Barrett is partnered at half-back by TJ Perenara who, alongside Cane, will be playing his final international in New Zealand.

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“This will be a particularly special night for Sam and TJ and the boys will put in a performance that honours their contribution to this team. Sam will be joining an exclusive club of All Black centurions, which is testament to his fortitude and work ethic,” Robertson said.

“As a Wellington man and the most-capped Hurricane of all time, we know that TJ is a crowd favourite in the capital and we look forward to him expressing himself on the field in front of friends and whānau at home.”

With Barrett starting in the number 10 jersey for the first time since November 2022, Damian McKenzie has dropped to the bench.

“Damian McKenzie can provide experienced cover at both first-five and full-back, as Beauden has previously, and it is great to bring David Havili in to complete the 23, providing strong depth across the backline,” Robertson said.

“We are excited about the opportunity this week to put in a complete performance against the Wallabies in Wellington.”

Will Jordan continues at full-back after stepping into that role at late notice last weekend and he is joined by Sevu Reece and Caleb Clarke in the back three.

Up front, the All Blacks are unchanged with Ardie Savea, Cane and Wallace Sititi once again the loose trio, while Scott Barrett and Tupou Vaa’i combine at lock.

Front-rowers Tyrel Lomax, Codie Taylor and Ethan de Groot complete the pack.

On the bench, they have once again opted for a 5-3 split with Asafo Aumua, Tamaiti Williams, Pasilio Tosi, Patrick Tuipulotu and Luke Jacobson the forward replacements, while Cortez Ratima, McKenzie and David Havili cover the backs.

New Zealand: 15 Will Jordan, 14 Sevu Reece, 13 Rieko Ioane, 12 Anton Lienert-Brown, 11 Caleb Clarke, 10 Beauden Barrett, 9  TJ Perenara, 8 Ardie Savea, 7 Sam Cane, 6 Wallace Sititi, 5 Tupou Vaa’i, 4 Scott Barrett (c), 3 Tyrel Lomax, 2 Codie Taylor, 1 Ethan de Groot
Replacements: 16 Asafo Aumua, 17 Tamaiti Williams, 18 Pasilio Tosi, 19 Patrick Tuipulotu, 20 Luke Jacobson, 21 Cortez Ratima, 22 Damian McKenzie, 23 David Havili

Date: Saturday, 28 September
Venue: Sky Stadium, Wellington
Referee: Nika Amashukeli (Georgia)
Assistant Referees: Karl Dickson (England), Damian Schneider (Argentina)
TMO: Eric Gauzins (France)

Local kick-off: 19:05
GMT kick-off: 07:05
BST kick-off: 08:05
AUS (AEST) kick-off: 17:05
RSA kick-off: 09:05
ARG kick-off: 04:05

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