Wallabies face All Blacks at Eden Park on Saturday as they chase end to New Zealand’s 23-year Bledisloe Cup hold

Australia’s Wallabies will attempt to end New Zealand’s 23-year hold on the Bledisloe Cup when they meet the All Blacks at Eden Park in Auckland on Saturday in the Bledisloe Cup series. The fixture comes with New Zealand’s unbeaten run at Eden Park standing at 53 Tests, a significant obstacle for Australia.

Eden Park’s history has been hostile to the Wallabies: the home side’s last loss there came in 1994 and Australia has managed just four wins at the ground in almost a century, the most recent in 1986. Wallabies coach Les Kiss said, “Eden Park’s a bloody cool stadium to play at,” and retained his starting XV from the victory over the Springboks in Perth two weeks ago with one enforced change, replacing suspended inside centre Hunter Paisami with Isaac Henry. Kiss explained his back-three selection decision: “We just wanted to persist with that continuity of that back three and see how that can go for another week for sure,” and added, “We know the aerial game is pretty important and both Max [Jorgensen] and Joseph did very well last week [against South Africa]. I have no doubt it’s going to be important again, so fingers crossed that works.”

The All Blacks arrive after a series against the Springboks that began with an opening victory but ended in a 3-1 series defeat, leaving the squad under pressure; the last time New Zealand lost four matches in a row was in 1998. Injuries have forced New Zealand into a reshuffle: “The season of fly half Ruben Love is over due to ankle surgery,” and Richie Mo’unga “withdrew this week with a calf complaint.”

Those absences have prompted positional moves, with fullback Damien McKenzie shifted to No 10 and veteran Beauden Barrett returning at 15; Kiss noted the pair’s experience, saying they “have more than 200 combined caps.” He added of Barrett’s role: “Beauden is going to be very important for them in a lot of respects in terms of leadership and being what I would say the main kicking option, other than Damian, to be able to manage the game from there as well,” he said. “It’s a good team.”

All Blacks coach Dave Rennie, who was sacked as Wallabies coach in 2022 to make way for Eddie Jones and took the New Zealand role this year after three years coaching Kobe in Japan, attempted to downplay personal angle ahead of facing his former side: “I’ve got no regrets, got to work with some really good people, people I have a lot of time for,” he said,” he said. Rennie also acknowledged the internal focus on Eden Park and the Bledisloe: “No one wants to be part of the first team for a long time to lose at Eden Park, or lose the Bledisloe,” he said. “I think if we don’t discuss it, some guys will be still mulling over that on game day.”

Captain Ardie Savea is out injured, but Quinn Tupaea has recovered from the knee problem that kept him out of the match against the Springboks in Baltimore; Kiss described Tupaea as the “best centre all year.” Kiss outlined the challenge New Zealand pose across multiple facets of play and the small margins that will decide the contest: “We’re going to have to be all the things that you say about the game, and then you have to then try and win those fine moments,” Kiss said. “That’s what I do think the All Blacks are great at: they win those ‘between’ moments so well and very often, so we’re going to have to be very good for those small moments and those small margins.”

Kiss has reverted to a bench made up of five forwards and three backs after using a 6-2 split against the Springboks, a change that should provide minutes for five-eighth Declan Meredith as a challenge to starter Ben Donaldson, who has yet to make the No 10 jersey his. “We know that Donno [Donaldson] can play 80 [minutes] and he does it regularly for the Force,” Kiss said. “But going back to a 5-3 [bench split], I’m always pretty keen to have a second 10 there, and both our 10s can also cover 15 as well, which is handy.”

To reclaim the Bledisloe Cup Australia must win both Saturday’s match in Auckland and the return fixture in Sydney the following week.