All Blacks predicted team: Beauden Barrett set for captaincy as Dave Rennie to unleash powerful line-up against Stormers
All Blacks head coach Dave Rennie (inset) and experienced playmaker Beauden Barrett.
The All Blacks’ opening game of Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry (RGR) tour of South Africa will see them facing the Stormers at the DHL Stadium in Cape Town on Friday.
Last week, while announcing his 44-man travelling squad, All Blacks head coach Dave Rennie confirmed that the matchday squads for their first four matches in South Africa have already been selected well in advance of the team’s arrival.
However, Rennie will have to change his plans as it was revealed on Tuesday that hooker George Bell has been ruled out of the tour due to a calf injury, with Blues representative Bradley Slater set to replace him in the squad.
Here is our best bet at a potential All Blacks line-up for their eagerly anticipated clash with the Stormers in Cape Town.
Predicted New Zealand team v Stormers
15 Josh Jacomb
The highly rated Chiefs playmaker is one of four fly-halves in the squad, along with Ruben Love, Beauden Barrett and Damian McKenzie, but Rennie hinted that he could be using Jacomb at full-back on this tour.
Although the likes of Barrett, McKenzie and Will Jordan have shone at full-back at Test level in the past, we don’t expect the latter two to be involved against the Stormers and the former is set for another position which means Jacomb should wear the number 15 jersey.
14 Rieko Ioane
The 29-year-old outside back is one of the most experienced players in the All Blacks’ 44-man squad but did not receive any game-time during their victories over France, Italy and Ireland in July.
Ioane was initially left out of the 34-man squad for those Nations Championship games but was called up as injury cover ahead of the Ireland clash. He retained his spot in the extended squad for the South African tour and will be highly motivated to do well against the Stormers.
13 Billy Proctor
The 27-year-old has made 13 Test appearances since making his debut against Fiji in 2024 but has not nailed down a place in the All Blacks’ starting line-up yet.
However, he was one of the Hurricanes’ best performers during their triumphant Super Rugby Pacific campaign and finished as one of the leading attacking players in that competition. Proctor ended the season in joint-eighth position for carries (153), 10th place for defenders beaten (41) and joint-second spot for offloads (20).
12 Timoci Tavatavanawai
Another player who will not be lacking motivation as the All Blacks prepare for their clash against the Stormers, the man known as “Jim” to his team-mates is one of the most exciting players with ball in hand.
Although his Super Rugby Pacific club the Highlanders were one of the competition’s also-rans, it was not through a lack of effort from Tavatavanawai who finished the season with the most defenders beaten (81) and in third place for offloads (18). A powerful ball carrier, he is sure to test the men from the Cape’s defence when he builds up a head of steam on attack.
11 Fehi Fineanganofo
Another one of the Hurricanes’ stars during their run to the Super Rugby Pacific title, the 23-year-old finished that campaign as the joint-leading try-scorer (17) – along with Hurricanes team-mate Josh Moorby – and that outstanding form resulted in him earning an All Blacks call-up.
Fineanganofo eventually made his Test debut off the replacements bench during the latter stages of the Nations Championship victory against France but was not considered for selection for the matches against Italy and Ireland as he was sidelined with an injury. He will be keen to hit the ground running at the DHL Stadium.
10 Beauden Barrett (c)
With 144 Test appearances under his belt, the two-time World Rugby Player of the Year is the most experienced player in the All Blacks’ touring squad, but he failed to get a look-in during last month’s Nations Championship Tests. Rennie has already confirmed that the 35-year-old playmaker will start against the Stormers and he will have a point to prove in this fixture.
Although he wasn’t at his best for the Blues this season, Barrett has an outstanding skill-set and will be expected to give the men in black attacking momentum. As the most experienced player in the squad, we also expect him to be named as the captain for this clash.
9 Kyle Preston
Despite being the Crusaders’ back-up scrum-half for most of their Super Rugby Pacific campaign, Preston was called up to the All Blacks squad for the Nations Championship ahead of Noah Hotham, who was the Christchurch-based outfit’s first choice number nine this year.
Preston retained his spot in the squad for the tour to South Africa and while he is behind the likes of Cameron Roigard and Cortez Ratima in the All Blacks’ scrum-half pecking order, their tour opener will present him with an ideal opportunity to show off his wares in his first start at international level.
8 Wallace Sititi
The 23-year-old impressed when he burst onto the international scene in 2024 and quickly established himself in the All Blacks’ first choice matchday squad with several outstanding performances.
Last month, after coming off the bench against France in the Nations Championship, Sititi was promoted to the All Blacks’ run-on side against Italy but delivered an underwhelming performance which resulted in Rennie dropping him from the matchday squad for their clash with Ireland. He will be expected to be at the forefront of New Zealand’s attacking onslaught in Cape Town on Friday.
7 Ethan Blackadder
The 31-year-old has only made 14 Test appearances since making his All Blacks debut against Tonga in 2021 with a plethora of injuries wreaking havoc with his international career since.
However, when on song, Blackadder is an outstanding loose forward who is a solid ball carrier with a high work-rate on defence and also a valuable source of possession in the lineouts. All the aforementioned qualities will come in handy against the Stormers and a fine all-round performance could lay down an early marker for a possible Test call-up.
6 Simon Parker
The 26-year-old is a tough loose forward who is renowned for his physical approach to the game and he will be expected to give New Zealand go-forward in the tight exchanges with his direct style of play.
After making his All Blacks debut against Argentina during last year’s Rugby Championship, Parker has won a handful of Test caps, although his services were not required during the men in black’s recent Nations Championship campaign. He will also be hoping to make a positive impact against the Stormers to enhance his Test chances.
5 Sam Darry
After impressing during his first year of international rugby in 2024, Darry missed the entire 2025 season due to a serious shoulder injury sustained in the build-up to the Blues’ Super Rugby Pacific campaign.
However, the 26-year-old made a full recovery and returned to action for the Blues earlier this year and soon found the form which earned him an All Blacks call-up. Darry was in New Zealand’s starting line-up for their Tests against France and Italy and impressed with his lineout and defensive work. He will be hoping to continue in that vein in this encounter.
4 Fabian Holland
The behemoth second-row suffered a similar injury to Darry’s earlier this year which ruled him out of the Highlanders’ Super Rugby Pacific campaign. That was a huge setback for the Dunedin-based outfit as Holland had cemented himself in the All Blacks’ starting line-up last year, making 12 appearance of which 10 were starts.
The Dutch-born lock eventually made his long-awaited return to action for Otago in an NPC match last month and despite only playing 40 minutes, it was enough game-time for Rennie to include him in his squad for the South African tour. Apart from his lineout prowess, Holland’s physicality on attack and defence will also be crucial against the Stormers.
3 Pasilio Tosi
The 28-year-old was a vital cog in the Hurricanes machine as they were crowned Super Rugby Pacific champions earlier this year, with his excellence in the execution of his core duties making him a regular in the Wellington-based franchise’s starting line-up.
A strong scrummager and willing ball carrier, Tosi will be determined to give a good account of himself after only making an appearance off the replacements bench against Italy in the Nations Championship last month.
2 Asafo Aumua
Another one of the Hurricanes’ stars during that victorious Super Rugby Pacific campaign, Aumua made his presence felt with impressive cameos off the bench against France and Ireland last month.
The 29-year-old has been part of the All Blacks’ set-up since 2017 but injuries and concussion issues saw him spending lengthy stints on the sidelines over the years. One of the most devastating ball carriers in New Zealand’s squad, Aumua will be hoping to do well with ball in hand as the men in black aim to get Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry tour off to a positive start.
1 George Bower
Although he is capable of packing down on both sides of the scrum, Bower is primarily a loosehead prop and we expect him to fulfill that role in this fixture.
The 34-year-old has been a stalwart for the Crusaders in Super Rugby Pacific over the years and has not let the All Blacks down since making his debut against Tonga in 2021. Bower is a powerful scrummager who also puts his body on the line in defence and don’t be surprised if he puts in some big hits at close quarters in Cape Town.
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The bench
16 Samisoni Taukei’aho, 17 Ollie Norris, 18 Siale Lauaki, 19 Patrick Tuipulotu, 20 Peter Lakai, 21 Semisi Tupou Ta’eiloa, 22 Cortez Ratima, 23 Emoni Narawa
With this being the first match of their tour, the starting line-up was difficult to predict and it’s the same with the replacements bench where we don’t expect first choice players to be involved. With the Springboks usually opting for a 6-2 split on the bench, we expect the All Blacks to go a similar route in the Tests and their games against South Africa’s United Rugby Championship sides will give them opportunities to experiment with that tactic.
Up front, Samisoni Taukei’aho should get the nod as the back-up hooker with George Bell already leaving the tour due to a calf injury and Codie Taylor also ruled out with a similar knock. Meanwhile, Ollie Norris showed in his previous Tests that he is more than capable of holding his own at international level while all eyes will be on fellow front-rower Siale Lauaki, who is set to make his All Blacks debut at the age of 23.
Meanwhile, the experience of Patrick Tuipulotu should come in handy when he makes his inevitable appearance as the replacement lock while Peter Lakai and another debutant, Semisi Tupou Ta’eiloa, are expected to provide plenty of energy off the bench when they are introduced in the back-row.
That means that the two spots on the bench as the reserve backline players should go to Ratima and Emoni Narawa, who will cover scrum-half and the outside backs with the likes of Barrett, Jacomb also capable of switching positions if required.
