Picking Dave Rennie’s All Blacks starting XV if an Anzac test was played today

Sunday, 3 May 2026

The Barrett brothers and Damian McKenzie are central to new All Blacks coach Dave Rennie’s selection plans.

ANALYSIS: With 12 rounds down in Super Rugby Pacific, Dave Rennie and his fellow All Blacks selectors have enough evidence for some early deliberations on their first squad of 2026.

Next month’s playoffs will help seal the deal, as they pick a team to face France in Christchurch on July 4.

Next year it may be a very different story, with the increasing likelihood of a first Anzac test between the All Blacks and Wallabies with the top players plucked out of Super Rugby mid-season.

What would happen in that scenario this year? With their selectors’ hats on, rugby writers Marc Hinton and Paul Cully were tasked with picking their All Blacks starting XVs if an Anzac test was played this weekend, from what they’ve seen so far this year.

Here are the big selection talking points, and their respective lineups:

In the driver’s seat - who gets handed the keys at No 10?

Ruben Love is pushing hard for the All Blacks No 10 jersey, but will he unseat the incumbents?

Marc Hinton: Beauden Barrett, by the skin of his teeth. I’ve got major reservations about the soon-to-be-35 Blues’ 10’s gas in the tank and ability to still be a factor on the global stage. There are a lot of errors and aimless kicks creeping into his game. But until Richie Mo’unga is available (South Africa, anyone?) Barrett remains our best test 10. Damian McKenzie exudes backup appeal and looks like a weapon in the bench role. But I could have my mind changed by a surging finals run from the Chiefs playmaker. Ruben Love needs more time in the saddle.

Paul Cully: Ruben Love. His development this year has been good enough to be rewarded. After years of going around in circles in the No 10 jersey, the All Blacks have the chance to break that cycle if they are bold enough. Will he be perfect? No. But his combination with Cam Roigard is already established and he is proving to a quick learner at the Hurricanes. That shows he is coachable and ready to improve further in the All Blacks jersey

Loose forward mix - who forms a trio with Ardie Savea?

Wallace Sititi and Peter Lakai are both compelling candidates - but can they both fit in an All Blacks loose trio?

Hinton: Even though we’ve only seen a game and a-bit from him back off the injury-list, there’s something about Chiefs back-rower Wallace Sititi that cries out “pick me”. The guy is dynamic, strong and adaptable, a decent lineout option and has a ton of upside. A strong finish to Super seals his bid at No 8. And I’d put mini-Ardie Peter Lakai on the other flank and let them do their thing in tandem. That’s an action-packed trio capable of changing a test. Samipeni Finau hovers with more size if required and Luke Jacobson’s experience and dependability also appeal.

Cully: Assuming that Ardie Savea is used at No 7, where he has played the vast majority of his rugby in Japan under Dave Rennie, the gaps are at No 6 and No 8. The blindside flanker position is wide open, but Crusaders No 6 Dom Gardiner is starting to make his move. He’s a big man with a great work rate but needs to keep working on his hands. Peter Lakai is the form player at No 8.

The speedsters - where does Will Jordan fit in the back-three?

Hinton: Easy. Jordan is fullback. End of. The days of shifting this world-class 15 from his best position to fit someone else in are surely over. That’s Ian Foster thinking. And on the wing? Caleb Clarke is a laydown for me on the left side. Ticks all the boxes. Great in the air. Just got to stay fit. And on the right side I have a showdown between the exciting Caleb Tangitau and more established Emonoi Narawa. Edge right now to the Highlanders flyer on pure impact and form. Shame about Fehi Fineanganofo. If he wasn’t heading offshore…

Last year’s captain Scott Barrett’s spot in the All Blacks starting lineup is under scrutiny with an array of locking contenders.

Cully: Jordan and Caleb Clarke are in my back three alongside Damian McKenzie, who will provide cover at No 10 and open up the possible 6-2 bench split. Jordan has been excellent at fullback for the Crusaders this year but he’s also the best No 14 in the country and his kicking game becomes important at the test level. McKenzie is playing good footy and he’s the best available goalkicker for the July tests at least.

It’s a lock - who forms the engine room with Fabian Holland out

Hinton: Bearing in mind Scott Barrett hasn’t played any footy yet either (so can’t be considered) and the best Kiwi lock in Super Rugby is not available (curse you, Warner Dearns), I’m going with Patrick Tuipulotu and Tupou Vaa’i as my top duo, with Josh Lord and Sam Darry hovering as backups. When Holland and Barrett return it’s a stacked position. Right now it’s just solid.

Will Jordan at 14 or 15? That is the big question for our selectors.

Cully: Sam Darry and Tupou Vaa’i. Darry has been a rock for the Blues this season and is a great lineout option as Holland recovers from his shoulder injury. Vaa’i is also a top set-piece operator but he’s a slightly different athlete around the field. That combination has a nice balance to it - they can be complementary players that provide the All Blacks with a good attacking platform. Does Scott Barrett make a permanent shift to No 6?

And the winners are (plus the biggest selection headaches)…

Hinton: If there’s a problem area it has to be prop, with Tamaiti Williams out long-term and Tyrel Lomax still to take the field in ‘26. That leaves Ethan de Groot shading Ollie Norris to start at loosehead and Fletcher Newell (better off the bench) the top tighthead, ahead of Pasilio Tosi and Ofa Tu’ungafasi who needs more footy. Tangitau and Tupaea (just shading the versatile Leicester Fainga’anuku in a tight call at centre) are my big movers and Tuipulotu holds a lock spot until Barrett or Holland return.

Hinton’s top XV: Will Jordan, Caleb Tangitau, Quinn Tupaea, Jordie Barrett, Caleb Clarke, Beauden Barrett, Cam Roigard; Wallace Sititi, Ardie Savea (capt), Peter Lakai, Tupou Vaa’i, Patrick Tuipulotu, Fletcher Newell, Codie Taylor, Ethan de Groot.

Cully: The No 6 jersey will be giving Rennie and co a few restless nights. It's a position of relative weakness for the All Blacks: they lack a ball carrier like Rob Valetini or an all-round rugby machine like Pieter-Steph du Toit. Shannon Frizell is returning to New Zealand but he won't be eligible for the July tests, at least, and has barely played any rugby in Japan Rugby League One this season due to injury. Rennie might opt for the Chiefs' Simon Parker, while the Tupou Vaa'i/Scott Barrett Band-Aid solution is another option. But the appeal of the raw-boned Gardiner is growing - he was also a huge part of Canterbury's NPC title success last year.

Cully’s top XV: Damian McKenzie, Will Jordan, Quinn Tupaea, Jordie Barrett (capt), Caleb Clarke, Ruben Love, Cam Roigard; Peter Lakai, Ardie Savea, Dom Gardiner; Tupou Vaa'i, Sam Darry, Fletcher Newell, Codie Taylor, Ethan de Groot.