All Blacks head coach Dave Rennie has named a 36-player squad for the northern leg of the Nations Championship, with Codie Taylor set to captain the side again in November. The tour takes the team to face Scotland, Wales and England before the finals weekend, and Rennie and his fellow selectors, Sir Graham Henry and Neil Barnes, have made several surprising choices.
The injury list
The squad is larger than many predicted, but the All Blacks have been hit hard by injuries. Samisoni Taukei’aho (calf), Shannon Frizell (knee), Tyrel Lomax (neck), Leroy Carter (ankle), Ruben Love (ankle), Ardie Savea (shoulder), Luke Jacobson (elbow), Caleb Clarke (shoulder), Ollie Norris (knee) and Billy Proctor (shoulder) are all sidelined. Simon Parker has also made himself unavailable for personal reasons.
Despite the growing list of absences, Rennie has left out Patrick Tuipulotu and Du’Plessis Kirifi. He has also overlooked several players who impressed during the NPC, including Tasman’s try-scoring machine Kyren Taumoefolau.
The squad has a familiar feel. Codie Taylor is joined by Asafo Aumua and George Bell as the hooker options. Ethan de Groot, George Bower, Xavier Numia, Fletcher Newell and Pasilio Tosi remain in the prop group, and uncapped tighthead Saula Ma’u comes in for Lomax.
After returning against Australia, Scott Barrett is named among the locks alongside Josh Lord, Fabian Holland and Tupou Vaa’i. Jamie Hannah earns his first All Blacks squad selection after serving as injury cover previously.
The loose forward stocks have been depleted all year, but Rennie still has a strong group of back-rowers. Anton Segner continues after his breakout year at the highest level. Peter Lakai and Wallace Sititi offer versatility in the loose trio, and Ethan Blackadder returns from the setback that kept him out of the two Tests against Australia.
Two fresh faces come from the Crusaders. Leicester Fainga’anuku earns a call-up after injuries kept him out of Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry series and the July internationals. Christian Lio-Willie earns his first selection under Rennie, having last been in the squad two years ago, when he debuted under Scott Robertson in 2024.
The scrum-halves are the same three Rennie has used for most of the year: Cam Roigard, Kyle Preston and Cortez Ratima. Damian McKenzie is listed among the first-fives and will likely start against Scotland. Richie Mo’unga is fit again and is likely to return against Wales or England. Josh Jacomb is the third fly-half option and could make his Test debut after playing on the Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry tour.
The centres are unchanged, with Jordie Barrett, Quinn Tupaea, Timoci Tavatavanawai and Anton Lienert-Brown all retained. Chay Fihaki is the headline outside back inclusion following Carter’s injury. He will compete with Will Jordan, Fehi Fineanganofo, Rieko Ioane and Josh Moorby for a place on the wing, while Beauden Barrett is an option at full-back and first-five.
Game-changing selection
Last year, Springboks coach Rassie Erasmus introduced his hybrid experiment by naming Andre Esterhuizen on the bench against the Barbarians. Usually a midfielder, Esterhuizen has since been used regularly as a loose forward, and the 32-year-old has become a regular bench option after struggling for Test caps behind Damian de Allende at inside centre.
South Africa are not the only team to try this approach. France have used Sekou Macalou and Oscar Jegou in similar roles, and England have trained with Ben Earl and Henry Pollock in the backs.
Rennie is keen to do the same with Fainga’anuku, who impressed in the back row for the Crusaders during this year’s Super Rugby Pacific campaign. He started the season in the backline, playing on the wing and in the centres, the positions where he began his career and earned his previous Test caps. However, his biggest impact came in the loose forwards, and that is where he has earned his recall.
A broken leg ruled Fainga’anuku out of the July Nations Championship Tests and Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry. Having played two halves of rugby for Tasman, he is set to return, and his availability could be a game-changer for the All Blacks.
Erasmus popularised the 6-2 bench split, which many nations have since copied. New Zealand have stuck with the traditional 5-3, with only Ian Foster departing from it, in the record defeat to the Boks in London before the 2023 Rugby World Cup. With Fainga’anuku able to play several positions, Rennie can select a 6-2 split that is essentially still a 5-3, which carries less risk. The bench is becoming more influential in international rugby, and Fainga’anuku offers impact in the back row, in the centres and on the wing. That last point is not true of Esterhuizen.
A real test of the All Blacks’ depth
The All Blacks are dealing with a real injury crisis. The loose forwards have been hit particularly hard, with Savea and Jacobson ruled out, but New Zealand managed both Bledisloe Cup Tests without them.
Frizell’s injury and Parker’s withdrawal add more pressure on the back-row stocks, and Lomax’s absence strains the front row further. Tamaiti Williams has already missed the entire season. Taukei’aho’s calf injury opens a door for Bell, who suffered a setback of his own before the first whistle of Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry.
Mo’unga will miss the first Test against Scotland at the very least. McKenzie and Beauden Barrett combined well as playmakers against the Wallabies, but the tour north is a different challenge, and the accumulated injuries put pressure on the whole squad.
Set-piece concerns
Rennie and his selectors have partly addressed the set-piece weaknesses the Springboks exposed in the Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry series. Lomax stays in New Zealand to deal with his neck issue. He is a world-class tighthead when at his best, but he has not shown that form this year, and he has been left out to protect his health and the scrum.
The scrum was not a major factor in the Tests against the Wallabies, largely because both teams treated the set-piece as a way to restart play rather than a weapon. Scotland and England have a different focus, particularly England. Steve Borthwick’s side may have endured their worst-ever Six Nations campaign, but their scrum was one of the few major positives. That strong scrummaging continued after the Six Nations during the southern hemisphere leg of the Nations Championship. Scotland’s scrum is often underrated, and both teams will look to pressure the All Blacks at set-piece time.
The lineout was also a problem for New Zealand against South Africa, as Rennie’s side regularly threw to the front. Attacking from further back is easier, but the All Blacks chose to avoid losing possession there and went where they felt they could win the ball.
Scott Barrett’s return improved the New Zealand lineout, but the Wallabies still put them under pressure and claimed multiple steals in both Tests. Gregor Townsend, Borthwick and Steve Tandy will notice that, and all three have strong lineout jumpers available.
Rewarding form
Some will question the absence of Lucas Casey and Taumoefolau. Casey impressed for Otago in the NPC, while Taumoefolau scored a remarkable 19 tries in 11 appearances for Tasman.
Even so, Rennie has made room to reward NPC form. Fihaki is the clearest example. He made his debut as a last-minute change for the Sydney Bledisloe Cup Test and keeps his place largely through his NPC performances. Hannah has also pushed his way up the lock pecking order, which is no small achievement given that Tuipulotu and Darry were both available for selection.
Lio-Willie’s recall addresses the need for an abrasive, physical back-rower now that Parker is staying in New Zealand. The 28-year-old deserves his return after narrowly missing out on the Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry tour.
Jacomb is also retained. He featured only in the later stages of Taranaki’s NPC season, but he was excellent in South Africa when he got his chance. Bell was superb for Canterbury and deserves another opportunity after injury kept him off the Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry tour.