The All Blacks have dropped New Zealand centurion Codie Taylor and promoted hooker Asafo Aumua for the third rugby Test against South Africa on Saturday.
Lock Sam Darry and flanker Peter Lakai have also been brought into the pack while their backline was unchanged after losing the second Test 33-26 last Saturday in Cape Town.
Taylor started all five Tests this year with Aumua his primary back-up, including for the first two matches against the Springboks. Taylor captained the All Blacks for the first Test in the absence of Ardie Savea, and last week took his tally of Tests to 111.
But Aumua will start the third match on Saturday at FNB Stadium in Johannesburg, with the four-Test series level at 1-1, and Samisoni Taukei’aho on the bench.
Darry gets his first involvement in the series with a start at the expense of Fabian Holland, who goes to the reserves.
Lakai came off the bench in both Tests and has the No 6 jersey after Simon Parker was jettisoned from the match-day 23. Wallace Sititi is the impact loose forward for his first chance in the series.
Lock Tupou Vaa’i will play his 50th Test.
“The team that doesn’t win this weekend can’t win the series,” coach Dave Rennie said in a statement. “That’s the kind of challenge we love to rise to.”
South Africa named their team on Monday with mainly one change, replacing injured full-back Damian Willemse with Cheslin Kolbe and filling the vacant wing with Kurt-Lee Arendse.
South Africa: C Kolbe; K-L Arendse, J Kriel, D de Allende, E Hooker; S Feinberg-Mngomezulu, C Reinach; W Louw, M Marx, O Nche; E Etzebeth, R Nortje; S Kolisi (capt), P-S du Toit, J Wiese. Reps: D Fourie, G Steenekamp, T du Toit; L de Jager, A Esterhuizen; C Hanekom, M van den Berg, M Libbok
New Zealand: D McKenzie; W Jordan, Q Tupaea, J Barrett, L Carter; R Love, C Roigard; G Bower, A Aumua, T Lomax; T Vaa’i, S Darry; P Lakai, L Jacobson, A Savea (capt). Reps: S Taukei’aho, X Numia, F Newell, F Holland, W Sititi, K Preston, A Lienert-Brown, J Moorby