Milestones for Carter and Whitelock

Editor

All Blacks fly-half Dan Carter will play his 100th game for his country after being named in the starting XV to take on England on Saturday.

All Blacks fly-half Dan Carter will make it 100 appearances for his country after being named in the XV to face England at Twickenham on Saturday.

The starting line-up for the second Test of their European Tour features just one change from the team that played France last weekend, with wing Julian Savea coming back into the side after his illness, replacing Cory Jane who is not in the 23.

Meanwhile, in the reserves, there is just the one change, in the forwards, with lock Luke Romano coming in as lock cover, replacing Sam Cane.

Saturday's matchday squad mixes experience with relative youth, with 959 caps in the 23, which boasts an average age in the mid-twenties.

“This is a Test match we are very much looking forward to,” said head coach Steve Hansen.

“We were completely outplayed by them last year but this is an opportunity for us to see if we have improved our game to the point where we can be competitive.

“The players are excited because this is what Test rugby is all about.”

He added: “We are expecting a really physical game with huge intensity, but also a game that will have high levels of energy, pace and skills.

“We know the England coaching staff have done a lot of homework so this may be a game where we add a few new things they haven't seen before.”

New Zealand: 15 Israel Dagg, 14 Charles Piutau, 13 Ben Smith, 12 Ma'a Nonu, 11 Julian Savea, 10 Daniel Carter, 9 Aaron Smith, 8 Kieran Read, 7 Richie McCaw, 6 Liam Messam, 5 Samuel Whitelock, 4 Brodie Retallick, 3 Owen Franks, 2 Keven Mealamu, 1 Tony Woodcock.
Replacements: 16 Dane Coles, 17 Wyatt Crockett, 18 Charlie Faumuina, 19 Luke Romano, 20 Steven Luatua, 21 Tawera Kerr-Barlow, 22 Aaron Cruden, 23 Ryan Crotty.

Date: Saturday, November 16
Kick-off: 14:30 GMT
Venue: Twickenham
Referee: Craig Joubert (South Africa)
Assistant referees: Nigel Owens (Wales), Francisco Pastrana (Argentina)
Television match official: Gareth Simmonds (Wales)
Assessor: Clayton Thomas (Wales)