All Blacks set for wholesale changes against Springboks

Kaino recovered from a shoulder injury sustained earlier this month, while Moala (knee) and Naholo (hamstring) have returned from injury and will travel with the team.

All Blacks set for wholesale changes against Springboks

(Reuters)

"Some people put their hands up but it's that time of year where we've got to be brave and trust the people we've selected so there'll probably be some more changes next week," Hansen was quoted as saying by New Zealand media.

"JK (Kaino) is available so he could come back in. We'll look at some of the performances tonight but Waisake is another one he's back fit and George (Moala) is back."

The All Blacks racked up their 16th test win in a row with a 36-17 victory over Argentina in the Rugby Championship and have already clinched the title with five straight victories.

Centre Anton Lienert-Brown, who was influential in Saturday's win in Buenos Aires, is also likely to feature against the Springboks, who secured a 18-10 win over Australia on Saturday.

The 21-year-old said he is ready to take up both midfield roles at the highest level.

"It's been good to play both," Lienert-Brown said.

"Fossy (assistant coach Ian Foster) said if you can make your mark in both positions it'll help you with selection so that's what I tried to do. I've been loving it."

A victory over South Africa in their final Rugby Championship test next weekend would match the world champions' top tier record for consecutive wins.

That record is currently held by the 1965-69 and 2013-14 All Blacks and 1997-98 Springboks.

(Reporting by Ian Rodricks in Bengaluru; editing by Amlan Chakraborty)


Share

2 min read

Published

Source: Reuters


Share this with family and friends


Get SBS News daily and direct to your Inbox

Sign up now for the latest news from Australia and around the world direct to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Download our apps
SBS News
SBS Audio
SBS On Demand

Listen to our podcasts
An overview of the day's top stories from SBS News
Interviews and feature reports from SBS News
Your daily ten minute finance and business news wrap with SBS Finance Editor Ricardo Gonçalves.
A daily five minute news wrap for English learners and people with disability
Get the latest with our News podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.

Watch on SBS
SBS World News

SBS World News

Take a global view with Australia's most comprehensive world news service
Watch the latest news videos from Australia and across the world