Twenty-year-old lock Josh Lord will make his All Blacks debut against the United States in Washington DC on Sunday.
Chiefs lock Josh Lord will come off the bench against the US at FedEx Field. Photo: PHOTOSPORT
Lord has been named on the bench, with Tupou Vaa'i joined in the starting XV by Sam Whitelock, who takes over as captain from Ardie Savea after missing the Rugby Championship tests in Australia.
Coach Ian Foster has made a raft of changes to the side that lost to South Africa in their final game of the Rugby Championship and is giving the players that missed the Australia leg of the tournament a run.
In the front row, prop Ethan de Groot gets his first test start after two appearances off the bench this year, while hooker Asafo Aumua gets his second start of the year and Angus Ta'avao is at tighthead.
George Bower and Tyrel Lomax are the prop reserves, with hooker Dane Coles making his return to the All Blacks via the bench.
Luke Jacobson is at blindside, Dalton Papalii at openside and Hoskins Sotutu at No.8.
Loose forward and former skipper Sam Cane returns to the national side via the bench, after missing the international season to undergo chest muscle surgery. He will be playing his 75th Test.
In the backs, halfback Finlay Christie gets his first test start with Richie Mo'unga at first-five.
Quinn Tupaea comes in at second five and Braydon Ennor is at centre for his first test start.
Will Jordan and George Bridge are on the wings and Damian McKenzie is at fullback.
Halfback TJ Perenara, first five Beauden Barrett and midfielder Anton Lienert-Brown are on the bench.
This will be the fifth time the All Blacks and USA have played each other, with the last test in Chicago in 2014.
"We've had a great week's build-up here in Washington DC. The early part of the week was about recovering from our travel and getting clarity around some concepts in our game and we have slowly been building in intensity and getting into our work," said All Blacks coach Ian Foster.
"The chance for us to play in a new city and new stadium is pretty special and the group is really excited and looking forward to the occasion. It's time to get back into our groove after our break in Australia and with a number of players having not played for a while. It's time to get our game going again and we are ready to go."
Speaking on the newest All Black, Foster said: "Josh Lord is a young man who's been really enthusiastic since he came in. He's bringing a lot of energy and learning a lot and we're looking forward to seeing him go."
On the players making their first Test starts, Foster added: "Ethan (de Groot) has been raring to go in recent weeks. We're really excited for him, he's been training well and he's a quality player with a big future.
"Finlay has made the most of his opportunities and he just keeps growing his game and getting better and better and we're delighted at how he's going. Braydon has had a year disrupted by injury but he's back. He's running fast and we're again looking forward to seeing how he goes."
The All Blacks and USA will be playing for the 1874 Cup which references the year rugby was first played in the United States, a collegiate match between McGill and Harvard University.
The matchday 23 is (Test caps in brackets. New caps in bold):
1. Ethan de Groot (2)
2. Asafo Aumua (4)
3. Angus Ta'avao (19)
4. Samuel Whitelock (127) - captain
5. Tupou Vaa'i (7)
6. Luke Jacobson (10)
7. Dalton Papalii (9)
8. Hoskins Sotutu (8)
9. Finlay Christie (3)
10. Richie Mo'unga (27)
11. George Bridge (16)
12. Quinn Tupaea (4)
13. Braydon Ennor (2)
14. Will Jordan (9)
15. Damian McKenzie (37)
16. Dane Coles (76)
17. George Bower (8)
18. Tyrel Lomax (10)
19. Josh Lord - new cap
20. Sam Cane (74)
21. TJ Perenara (75)
22. Beauden Barrett (98)
23. Anton Lienert-Brown (53)