A 44-strong All Blacks squad has been named to travel to South Africa and the United States for the inaugural Rugby\u2019s Greatest Rivalry Tour.<\/p>\n
All Blacks Head Coach Dave Rennie and fellow selectors, Sir Graham Henry and Neil Barnes, have retained all 34 players from the initial Nations Championship Southern Series squad, and named an additional ten players to bolster the group for the seven-week tour.
\n\tProp Siale Lauaki, loose forward Semisi Tupou Ta’eiloa and inside back Josh Jacomb are the three uncapped players to join the group. They are joined by returning All Blacks Ollie Norris, George Bell, Fabian Holland, Ethan Blackadder, Timoci Tavatavanawai, Rieko Ioane and Emoni Narawa.<\/p>\n
Rennie congratulated the selected players and said all 44 would be required to play in the tour.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis tour will challenge us and demand the very best of us. We have selected a squad that we know is up to the challenge.\u00a0\u00a0It\u2019s a balanced blend of experienced Test players and a cohort of younger players who will be keen to work hard and showcase their skillset on tour.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are thrilled for those players who will have the opportunity to pull on the All Blacks jersey for the first time, and welcome back those who are returning to the group.<\/p>\n
\u201cWith eight matches in six weeks, including a four-Test series against the Springboks, this would have to be the toughest tour in rugby. Every player will be required to play their part across this tour, whether it\u2019s preparing to play or helping their mates prepare.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt will be an intense seven weeks of touring but an excellent opportunity for us to pit ourselves against the current benchmark team in world rugby, and to build connections with each other in a way that only a tour of this scale can do. What we learn about ourselves on and off-field will set us up well for the Rugby World Cup in 2027,\u201d Rennie said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe franchise games will provide an opportunity for other leaders in the group to step in as Captain, before Ardie Savea arrives in South Africa ahead of the first Test match. Ardie has carried a massive workload in the last couple of years and we think it is best for him to have an extended break so he can come back ready to lead us into the Test series. We have a number of excellent leaders in our squad who will embrace the chance to captain the side.\u201d<\/p>\n
The All Blacks will kick off Rugby\u2019s Greatest Rivalry in Cape Town on 7 August (local time) against the Stormers, who finished near the top of the United Rugby Championship (URC) regular season standings. They will play the Sharks at the notoriously difficult \u201cShark Tank\u201d (Kings Park Stadium) in Durban four days later and then head to Pretoria to take on URC grand finalists, the Bulls, on 15 August.<\/p>\n
The first Test against the Springboks is on 22 August at Johannesburg\u2019s Ellis Park, followed by the final franchise game against the Lions at the same venue on 25 August. The second and third Tests will be at DHL Stadium in Capetown and FNB Stadium in Johannesburg respectively. Both teams will then travel to America to play the fourth and final Test in Baltimore, Maryland \u2013 the first time the rivals have played each other on US soil.<\/p>\n
New Zealand Rugby CEO, Steve Lancaster, said this would be a landmark tour for both rugby-mad nations and a generation of rugby fans.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is the next chapter in one of our sport\u2019s defining rivalries. It is our first full-scale, old-style tour in 30 years \u2013 since \u2018The Incomparables\u2019 led by Sean Fitzpatrick pulled off the All Blacks\u2019 first series win in South Africa in 1996,\u201d Lancaster said.<\/p>\n
\u201cFans from both nations and around the world have embraced the concept with around 3,000 fans expected to travel for the tour \u2013 the majority from New Zealand. We already can\u2019t wait to host the next iteration in 2030 when South Africa embark on their first professional-era tour of New Zealand.\u201d<\/p>\n
New Zealand squad (age, Super Rugby Club, province, Test caps):<\/p>\n
* denotes new cap<\/p>\n
Hookers
\n\tAsafo Aumua (29 \/ Hurricanes \/ Wellington \/ 22)
\n\tCodie Taylor (35 \/ Crusaders \/ Canterbury \/ 109)
\n\tSamisoni Taukei\u2019aho (28 \/ Chiefs \/ Waikato \/ 44)
\n\tGeorge Bell (24 \/ Crusaders \/ Canterbury \/ 4)<\/p>\n
Props
\n\tEthan De Groot (27 \/ Highlanders \/ Southland \/ 43)
\n\tGeorge Bower (34 \/ Crusaders \/ Otago \/ 26)
\n\tXavier Numia (27 \/ Hurricanes \/ Wellington \/ 2)
\n\tOllie Norris (26 \/ Chiefs \/ Waikato \/ 3)
\n\tTyrel Lomax (30 \/ Hurricanes \/ Tasman \/ 51)
\n\tFletcher Newell (26 \/ Crusaders \/ Canterbury \/ 37)
\n\tPasilio Tosi (27 \/ Hurricanes \/ Bay of Plenty \/ 17)
\n\tSiale Lauaki * (23 \/ Hurricanes \/ Wellington \/ 0)<\/p>\n
Locks
\n\tTupou Vaa\u2019i (26 \/ Chiefs \/ Taranaki \/ 47)
\n\tPatrick Tuipulotu (33 \/ Blues \/ Auckland \/ 57)
\n\tJosh Lord (25 \/ Chiefs \/ Taranaki \/ 15)
\n\tSam Darry (26 \/ Blues \/ Canterbury \/ 10)
\n\tFabian Holland (23 \/ Highlanders \/ Otago \/ 12)<\/p>\n
Loose Forwards
\n\tPeter Lakai (23 \/ Hurricanes \/ Wellington \/ 10)
\n\tSimon Parker (26 \/ Chiefs \/ Northland \/ 8)
\n\tEthan Blackadder (31 \/ Crusaders \/ Tasman \/ 14)
\n\tLuke Jacobson (29 \/ Chiefs \/ Waikato \/ 27)
\n\tAnton Segner (25 \/ Blues \/ Auckland \/ 2)
\n\tArdie Savea (32 \/ Moana Pasifika \/ Wellington \/ 109) (Captain)
\n\tWallace Sititi (23 \/ Chiefs \/ North Harbour \/ 21)
\n\tSemisi Tupou Ta’eiloa * (22 \/ Moana Pasifika \/ Southland \/ 0)<\/p>\n
Halfbacks
\n\tCameron Roigard (25 \/ Hurricanes \/ Counties Manukau \/ 20)
\n\tCortez Ratima (25 \/ Chiefs \/ Waikato \/ 24)
\n\tKyle Preston (26 \/ Crusaders \/ Wellington \/ 1)<\/p>\n
First Five-Eighths
\n\tRuben Love (25 \/ Hurricanes \/ Wellington \/ 8)
\n\tBeauden Barrett (35 \/ Blues \/ Taranaki \/ 144)
\n\tDamian McKenzie (31 \/ Chiefs \/ Waikato \/ 77)
\n\tJosh Jacomb * (25 \/ Chiefs \/ Taranaki \/ 0)<\/p>\n
Midfielders
\n\tJordie Barrett (29 \/ Hurricanes \/ Taranaki \/ 81)
\n\tQuinn Tupaea (27 \/ Chiefs \/ Waikato \/ 26)
\n\tBilly Proctor (27 \/ Hurricanes \/ Wellington \/ 13)
\n\tAnton Lienert-Brown (31 \/ Chiefs \/ Waikato \/ 90)
\n\tTimoci Tavatavanawai (28 \/ Highlanders \/ Tasman \/ 2)<\/p>\n
Outside Backs
\n\tCaleb Clarke (27 \/ Blues \/ Auckland \/ 35)
\n\tFehi Fineanganofo (23 \/ Hurricanes \/ Bay of Plenty \/ 1)
\n\tLeroy Carter (27 \/ Chiefs \/ Bay of Plenty \/ 7)
\n\tJosh Moorby (28 \/ Hurricanes \/ Waikato \/ 2)
\n\tWill Jordan (28 \/ Crusaders \/ Tasman \/ 57)
\n\tRieko Ioane (29 \/ Blues \/ Auckland \/ 88)
\n\tEmoni Narawa (27 \/ Chiefs \/ Bay of Plenty \/ 4)
\n\t\u00a0
\n\t[Unavailable due to injury: Tamaiti Williams, Scott Barrett and Leicester Fainga\u2019anuku.]\u00a0<\/p>\n
Rugby\u2019s Greatest Rivalry Fixtures (all times listed are NZST):
\n\tSaturday 8 August, 5:00am: All Blacks v Stormers, DHL Stadium, Cape Town
\n\tWednesday 12 August, 5:00am: All Blacks v Sharks, Hollywoodbets Kings Park, Durban
\n\tSunday 16 August, 5:00am: All Blacks v Bulls, Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria
\n\tSunday 23 August, 3:00am: All Blacks v Springboks, Ellis Park, Johannesburg (first Test)
\n\tWednesday 26 August, 5:00am: All Blacks v Lions, Ellis Park, Johannesburg
\n\tSunday 30 August, 3:00am: All Blacks v Springboks, DHL Stadium, Cape Town (second Test)
\n\tSunday 6 September, 3:00am: All Blacks v Springboks, FNB Stadium, Johannesburg (third Test)
\n\tSunday 13 September, 9:00am: All Blacks v Springboks, M&T Bank Stadium, Baltimore (fourth Test)
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