New Zealand's final match of the 2024 rugby season will take them to the Allianz Stadium in Turin to face Italy in the Autumn Nations Series on Saturday night.
The All Blacks slipped to third place in the world rankings last week when they were narrowly beaten by France, but they will be determined to bounce back here and end the season on a high.
Match preview
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It has been a mixed 12 months for New Zealand, as they were forced to relinquish the Rugby Championship trophy to South Africa in September but enjoyed success either side of that competition during the mid and year-end Tests.
In July, the All Blacks edged England in back-to-back matches before dispatching Fiji, and they kicked off this month's internationals with another slender victory over the Red Rose ahead of a statement win over Ireland a couple of weeks ago.
Admittedly, Scott Robertson's side could not finish the job when in control at the Stade de France last week and were beaten 30-29 by France, but it was another indication of their steady development.
There is plenty to like about the All Blacks right now, with the combination of their front-row scrummaging strength, the dynamic half-back pairing of Beauden Barrett and Cam Roigard, and emerging talents like Wallace Sititi and Peter Lakai positioning Robertson's team strongly for 2025.
While some pessimists might fear a potential stumble against Italy this weekend, there is realistically very little cause for concern ahead of the Turin clash given the Azzurri's performances in the Autumn Nations Series so far, which have clearly shown they are still well below the All Blacks' standard.
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Indeed, the heavy 50-18 defeat to familiar foes Argentina was a worrying result for Gonzalo Quesada, but it was the performance against Georgia in Genoa last week that truly sounded the alarm bells.
While the Azzurri deserve credit for overturning a 17-6 half-time deficit to secure a narrow three-point win over the Lelos, that performance hardly indicates that they can challenge the might of New Zealand this weekend.
The last time these two faced off on the international stage was at the World Cup last year, and Italy barely laid a finger on their Southern Hemisphere counterparts, who romped to an incredible 96-17 victory in Lyon.
The Italians have a talented backline and a knack for moving the ball quickly, but they are often guilty of overplaying, which is something they cannot afford to do here, as turnovers against the All Blacks will prove costly.
For Quesada's side to have any chance of pulling off an upset here, it will be crucial for their half-backs to take control of the game, kick accurately, and limit opportunities for the visitors to launch counter-attacks - failure to do so will likely end in the All Blacks' back three having a field day for 80 minutes in Turin.
Italy form (all competitions):
- W
- L
- W
- W
- L
- W
New Zealand form (all competitions):
- W
- W
- W
- W
- W
- L
Team News
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Quesada has made six changes to the side that edged Georgia last week, including Ange Capuozzo returning to full-back in place of Matt Gallagher, having completed his return to the field protocol.
The starting pair from the first autumn Test in Udine against Argentina return for this match, with Paolo Garbisi, just 24 years old, taking the field for his 42nd appearance in the number 10 jersey alongside half-back partner Martin Page-Relo.
This match will mark the end of an era for the All Blacks, with stalwarts Sam Cane and TJ Perenara set to feature for the last time in their professional career in the famous All-Black uniform.
Cane is just one of the changes to the team that came up short against France last week, with Patrick Tuipulotu also coming into the pack alongside Scott Barrett, which sees Tupou Vaa'i drop to the bench.
There are also two changes behind the scrum, with Jordie Barrett injured, Anton Lienert-Brown partners Rieko Ioane in midfield, and Mark Telea returns after recovering from a hand injury.
Italy starting lineup: 15 Ange Capuozzo, 14 Jacopo Trulla, 13 Juan Ignacio Brex (c), 12 Tommaso Menoncello, 11 Monty Ioane, 10 Paolo Garbisi, 9 Martin Page-Relo, 8 Ross Vintcent, 7 Manuel Zuliani, 6 Sebastian Negri, 5 Dino Lamb, 4 Federico Ruzza, 3 Marco Riccioni, 2 Gianmarco Lucchesi, 1 Danilo Fischetti
Replacements: Replacements: 16 Giacomo Nicotera, 17 Mirco Spagnolo 18 Simone Ferrari, 19 Niccolo Cannone, 20 Alessandro Izekor, 21 Alessandro Garbisi, 22 Leonardo Marin 23 Marco Zanon
New Zealand starting lineup: 15 Will Jordan, 14 Mark Tele'a, 13 Rieko Ioane, 12 Anton Lienert-Brown, 11 Caleb Clarke, 10 Beauden Barrett, 9 Cam Roigard, 8 Ardie Savea, 7 Sam Cane, 6 Wallace Sititi, 5 Patrick Tuipulotu, 4 Scott Barret (c), 3 Tyrel Lomax, 2 Codie Taylor, 1 Ethan de Groot
Replacements: 16 Asafo Aumua, 17 Ofa Tu'ungafasi, 18 Fletcher Newell, 19 Tupou Vaa'i, 20 Peter Lakai, 21 TJ Perenara, 22 David Havili, 23 Damian McKenzie
We say: Italy 15-52 New Zealand
While we are not expecting to see a repeat of the 79-point hammering the All Blacks handed Italy in Lyon last year, we do still feel that the visitors will secure a comfortable victory this weekend.
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Devesh Jaganath
