All Blacks rev up 'Ferrari' amid second row crisis

The All Blacks were already thin at lock after Sam Whitelock's retirement and Brodie Retallick's move to Japan.

All Blacks rev up 'Ferrari' amid second row crisis

Tupou Vaa'i and Sam Darry will form one of the more untested All Blacks pairings in recent history as injuries continue to bite into Scott Robertson's second row stocks.

Robertson was already without captain Scott Barrett (broken finger) for Saturday's Rugby Championship opener against Argentina in Wellington (5.05pm AEST) and fellow starter Patrick Tuipulotu then suffered a calf injury in training.

Vaa'i, 24, is suddenly the senior man as Darry, 24, gets his first Test start and Josh Lord, 23, is promoted to the bench for his fifth international.

Watch the 2024 Rugby Championship with every match streaming ad free, live and on demand on the home of rugby, Stan SportSam Darry of the Blues celebrates his try.

The All Blacks were already thin at lock after Sam Whitelock's retirement and Brodie Retallick's move to Japan.

New Zealand are blessed with world class depth in the outside backs, however, and Will Jordan has been named on the bench for his first Test of the year.

Jordan has scored 31 tries in 31 Tests including a hat-trick against Los Pumas in last year's Rugby World Cup semi-final.

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He missed the entire Super Rugby Pacific season with a shoulder injury but successfully returned for Tasman last weekend.

"Will's looking great in training," All Blacks five-eighth Damian McKenzie said.

"He's like a Ferrari - bring him out of the garage at the right time and he's ready to go. It's been a long time coming since the World Cup, so we're excited to have him back."https://twitter.com/StanSportRugby/status/1821363678098190769?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

Other talking points include Rieko Ioane's demotion to the bench with Anton Lienert-Brown taking his No.13 jersey after an impressive performance against Fiji.

TJ Perenara starts at halfback after recovering from a leg injury while Ethan Blackadder got the nod at blindside flanker ahead of Samipeni Finau and the injured Luke Jacobson.

Ardie Savea will captain the All Blacks for the ninth time in place of Barrett.All Blacks players in a huddle during a 2022 clash with Ireland at Eden Park.

"It's a special night for Ardie leading the team in his hometown and it's great to have TJ and Will back in the mix," Robertson said.

"Once again there were some close selection calls but we've picked a squad to win the key contests and perform on Saturday. We know Argentina will bring a lot of physicality and passion to the Test and we're ready for that challenge."

Argentina have named Juan Martin Gonzalez, Juan Cruz Mallia and Lucio Cinti in the starting XV while Agustin Creevy, Joel Sclavi and Tomas Lavanini are on the bench where Efrain Elias is set for a Test debut.https://twitter.com/StanSportRugby/status/1821700473650602355?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

ALL BLACKS (15-1): Beauden Barrett, Sevu Reece, Anton Lienert-Brown, Jordie Barrett, Mark Telea, Damian McKenzie, TJ Perenara, Ardie Savea (c), Dalton Papali'i, Ethan Blackadder, Sam Darry, Tupou Vaa'i, Tyrel Lomax, Codie Taylor, Ethan de Groot

Reserves: Asafo Aumua, Ofa Tu'ungafasi, Fletcher Newell, Josh Lord, Wallace Sititi, Cortez Ratima, Rieko Ioane, Will Jordan