All Blacks Team vs Ireland: Rennie Makes Four Changes

Dave Rennie has made four changes and one positional switch to his All Blacks starting lineup for the Eden Park showdown against Ireland, with a significant back-row reshuffle headlining the selections and a standout rookie earning his reward on the biggest stage.

The changes signal Rennie's intent to match Ireland's physicality and work-rate at the breakdown, areas that have defined the visitors' threat on tour. The back-row call in particular carries weight — Eden Park demands abrasive, ball-carrying forward power, and Rennie's selection suggests he has seen enough in training to trust a reshuffled loose trio with the task.

The rookie inclusion is the headline that will dominate pre-match discussion in New Zealand. Breaking into an All Blacks matchday squad is one thing — earning a starting berth at Eden Park against a top-three-ranked Ireland side is another entirely. It speaks to the impression the youngster has made on Rennie's coaching staff in the build-up to this fixture.

For Ireland, the selection news will be studied closely. Andy Farrell's side arrived in New Zealand having built genuine belief through their recent series performances, and any structural shift in the All Blacks forward pack creates tactical questions that Ireland's analytical team will have been working through since the squad was announced.

With the series on the line and Eden Park's unbeaten fortress reputation adding its familiar psychological weight, Rennie's changes represent a calculated gamble — one that prioritises freshness and forward dynamism over continuity. Whether the reshuffled pack can deliver the platform needed will determine whether New Zealand retains its grip on the series or Ireland forces a historic result on New Zealand soil.

Both sides return to action at Eden Park, where the stakes could not be higher for either coaching staff's immediate future.

ALL BLACKS – 15 Damian McKenzie, 14 Will Jordan, 13 Quinn Tupaea, 12 Jordie Barrett, 11 Josh Moorby, 10 Ruben Love, 9 Cam Roigard, 8 Ardie Savea (c), 7 Luke Jacobson, 6 Tupou Vaa’i, 5 Patrick Tuipulotu, 4 Josh Lord, 3 Tyrel Lomax, 2 Codie Taylor, 1 Ethan de Groot.
Bench: 16 Asafo Aumua, 17 Xavier Numia, 18 Fletcher Newell, 19 Anton Segner, 20 Peter Lakai, 21 Cortez Ratima, 22 Anton Lienert-Brown, 23 Caleb Clarke.

IRELAND – 15 Hugo Keenan, 14 Robert Baloucoune, 13 Garry Ringrose, 12 Stuart McCloskey, 11 Jimmy O’Brien, 10 Sam Prendergast, 9 Jamison Gibson-Park, 8 Jack Conan, 7 Josh van der Flier, 6 Tadhg Beirne, 5 James Ryan, 4 Joe McCarthy, 3 Tadhg Furlong, 2 Dan Sheehan (c), 1 Tom O’Toole.
Bench: 16 Ronan Kelleher, 17 Jeremy Loughman, 18 Thomas Clarkson, 19 Nick Timoney, 20 Sean Jansen, 21 Craig Casey, 22 Ciaran Frawley, 23 Bundee Aki.