Sevu Reece will make his All Blacks debut when he starts on the wing in the team’s opening Rugby Championship clash of 2019, against Argentina.

The flying Fijian who made his Super Rugby debut this season was also was also named Super Rugby rookie of the year.

The Kadavu native made a mark for himself after being given a lifeline by the champions Crusaders in 2019 after being unwanted by the Chiefs.

He joins the list of Fijians who played for All Blacks on the wings like Joeli Vidiri, Sitiveni Sivivati and Joe Rokocoko.

The matchday 23 sees a blend of experience and youth with five uncapped All Blacks named. Including Reece there’s the uncapped Atu Moli and new All Blacks Luke Jacobson, Josh Ioane and Braydon Ennor, who are all named on the bench.

Balancing that is the experience of lock Brodie Retallick, captain Sam Cane at openside flanker, half-backs Aaron Smith and Beauden Barrett and Ben Smith at fullback.

All Blacks head coach Steve Hansen said the team has had a good week’s preparation after travelling from New Zealand last weekend.

“As always, with the first game of the season, we’ve worked hard on building our relationships, re-establishing our connections and combinations and getting clarity in our roles. We’ll continue to nail the details further in training throughout the week so that we are bright, clear and excited to play with real intensity come Saturday,” he told Planet Rugby

“It’s going to be exciting to watch how the new All Blacks perform along with their more experienced teammates. The team is a mixture of experience and raw enthusiasm, which I’m sure everyone is looking forward to seeing come together and play.”

Hansen added: “We have the utmost respect for Argentina. We know that we’ll be facing a confident, physical side. Their players will have taken a lot of confidence and self-belief from the Jaguares Super Rugby season, and with the inclusion of their overseas players, there will be added excitement to their group. They will see this game as a massive opportunity to make a statement and it will be our job to make a statement of our own.”

New Zealand: 15 Ben Smith, 14 Sevu Reece, 13 Anton Lienert-Brown, 12 Ngani Laumape, 11 Jordie Barrett, 10 Beauden Barrett, 9 Aaron Smith, 8 Ardie Savea, 7 Sam Cane (c), 6 Vaea Fifita, 5 Patrick Tuipulotu, 4 Brodie Retallick, 3 Angus Ta’avao, 2 Dane Coles, 1 Ofa Tuungafasi

Replacements: 16 Liam Coltman, 17 Atu Moli, 18 Nepo Laulala, 19 Jackson Hemopo, 20 Luke Jacobson, 21 Brad Weber, 22 Josh Ioane, 23 Braydon Ennor.

Edited by Grace Narayan

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