Vito had been given the opportunity to push for a late inclusion, just like he did in 2011, in the All Blacks' World Cup squad likely to be at the expense of Liam Messam.
Wallabies flyhalf Cooper has also been given his final chance to impress Michael Cheika as he narrows down his squad before the deadline in two weeks time.
A university graduate of Classical History, Vito will undoubtedly smile at the irony of Cooper's selection ahead of the likes of Bernard Foley or Matt Giteau in the pivotal role.
Cooper, it appears has been thrown to the proverbial lions in the Eden Park coliseum where an angry All Blacks side, beaten 27-19 last week in Sydney, will be out to not only retain the Bledisloe Cup, but send a message ahead of the World Cup.
The All Blacks rarely have two successive bad performances and last year they put Wallabies to the sword to win 51-20 at Eden Park after drawing 12-12 in Sydney the previous week.
The 27-year-old Cooper has also suffered numerous ignominies at the hands of his fellow New Zealanders, most notably during the 2011 World Cup semi-final at Eden Park.
Cooper began the game with a kickoff out on the full and ended it being dumped onto his backside by Richard Kahui, which typified a poor performance by the flyhalf. He was also routinely booed by the crowd every time he got the ball.
To top off his Eden Park nightmares, Cooper destroyed knee ligaments in the playoff for third against Wales a week later and since the reconstructive surgery has rarely looked the confidently mercurial player he once was.
Cooper was one of six changes made by Michael Cheika to the side who beat the All Blacks last week, with the coach abandoning the twin-openside-flanker tactic that worked so well at the Olympic Stadium.
David Pocock has dropped to the bench with specialist number eight Wycliff Palu given a chance to stretch his legs after a long season, while behemoth lock Will Skelton returns to the starting side.
The rangy Vito's inclusion on the blindside of the scrum was something of a surprise by coach Steve Hansen, though he had promised all of his players an opportunity to push their World Cup credentials in the five tests before the global showpiece.
Vito appears to be in a straight battle with Messam for the final spot in the loose forward mix in England, mirroring a similar late selection puzzle from four years ago when the Wellingtonian got the nod.
Hansen made just three changes to his side that were beaten last week, with Sam Whitelock replacing Luke Romano while Ma'a Nonu returns from injury to replace Sonny Bill Williams at inside centre as they look to retain the symbol of trans-Tasman supremacy that they have held since 2003.
Captain Richie McCaw will play his world record 142nd test match at Eden Park, where they have not lost to the Wallabies since 1986.
(Editing by Amlan Chakraborty)
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