All Blacks team: Beauden Barrett’s positional switch as Codie Taylor returns to captain side against Bulls
Codie Taylor (left) makes his first appearance of the Rugby's Greatest Rivalry tour while Beauden Barrett shifts positions
All Blacks head coach Dave Rennie has made widespread changes to his team to face the Bulls in game three of the Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry tour, with Codie Taylor named captain.
The experienced hooker is making his first appearance of the tour, and becomes the third player to lead the All Blacks into battle on South African soil this series.
Rennie’s side come into the final hit-out before the Test series in good spirits, boasting two wins from their opening two games of the tour and fresh off the back of a dominant 54-0 win over the Sharks last time out.
All Blacks make widespread change for Bulls clash in final Test audition
Rennie has named an entirely fresh starting XV for the clash in Pretoria, while 14 of the 23 also return after playing against the Stormers in last week’s opener. Beauden Barrett gets the nod at full-back, with Leroy Carter and Josh Moorby on the wings.
Rieko Ioane shifts into midfield, joining Anton Lienert-Brown in the process.
Josh Jacomb will start for the first time, after debuting off the bench against the Stormers, and he joins Cortez Ratima in the halves.
Peter Lakai, Anton Segner and Simon Parker form a strong back-row combination, with Patrick Tuipulotu and Fabian Holland named in the locks. Captain Taylor is joined by props Tyrel Lomax and Xavier Numia, who also make their first appearance of the tour.
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Rennie has named a traditional 5:3 split on the bench, with Samisoni Taukei’aho, George Bower, Siale Lauaki, Josh Lord and Wallace Sititi the forward options, while Kyle Preston, Timoci Tavatavanawai and Emoni Narawa are the back options.
Commenting on his selection, Rennie said: “The Bulls have consistently been South Africa’s best franchise side, making the United Rugby Championship finals in four of the last five years. Loftus Versfeld is one of the most formidable rugby grounds in the world, so we are aware of the challenge in front of us and excited at what lies ahead.”
“This is also our final hit-out before the first Test match against the Springboks, so it is an important game for us. There is healthy competition for Test spots so this is another opportunity for players to put their hands up for selection.
“Huge congratulations to Codie on his first All Blacks captaincy. He is a top man and has done a great job leading this tour group. This is a proud moment for an All Blacks centurion who has made a massive contribution to this team as a player and a leader.”
All Blacks team to face Bulls
All Blacks: 15 Beauden Barrett, 14 Leroy Carter, 13 Rieko Ioane, 12 Anton Lienert-Brown, 11 Josh Moorby, 10 Josh Jacomb, 9 Cortez Ratima, 8 Peter Lakai, 7 Anton Segner, 6 Simon Parker, 5 Patrick Tuipulotu, 4 Fabian Holland, 3 Tyrel Lomax, 2 Codie Taylor (c), 1 Xavier Numia
Replacements: Samisoni Taukei’aho, 17 George Bower, 18 Siale Lauaki, 19 Josh Lord, 20 Wallace Sititi, 21 Kyle Preston, 22 Timioci Tavatavanawai, 23 Emoni Narawa
Date: Saturday, 15 August 2026
Venue: Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria
Kick-off: 19:00 (local SAST), 18:00 (UK), 19:00 (France), 03:00 (16 August, AEST), 05:00 (16 August, New Zealand), 14:00 (Argentina), 02:00 (16 August, JST), 13:00 (EDT)
Referee: Nika Amashukeli (GRU)
Assistant Referees: Karl Dickson (RFU) and Matthew Carley (RFU)
TMO: Eric Gauzins (FFR)
FPRO: Mike Adamson (SRU)
Broadcasters: SuperSport (South Africa), Sky Sports (New Zealand/UK), Stan Sport/Nine Sport (Australia), RugbyPass TV (USA), WOWWOW (Japan)
