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All Blacks XV squad named

(Photo by Lorenzo Di Cola/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

The 30-strong All Blacks XV squad was selected by the All Blacks coaching team of Ian Foster, Joe Schmidt and Jason Ryan for the 2023 Lipovitan-D Challenge Cup against Japan XV and Brave Blossoms.

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The squad includes nine players with Test experience including Aidan Ross, Asafo Aumua, Akira Ioane, Pita Gus Sowakula, Brad Weber, Folau Fakatava, Stephen Perofeta, Brett Cameron and Jack Goodhue.

Following their inaugural Northern tour last year, Leon MacDonald has again been named as All Blacks XV Head Coach alongside Assistant Coaches Clayton McMillan and Scott Hansen.

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The 30-strong All Blacks XV squad is as follows (age, Super Rugby club, province):

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Jermaine Ainsley (28, Highlanders, Otago)
Oli Jager (27, Crusaders, Canterbury)
Tevita Mafileo (25, Hurricanes, Bay of Plenty)
Xavier Numia (24, Hurricanes, Wellington)
Aidan Ross (27, Chiefs, Bay of Plenty)

Hookers
Asafo Aumua (26, Hurricanes, Wellington)
Ricky Riccitelli (28, Blues, Taranaki)
Tyrone Thompson (23, Chiefs, Wellington)

Locks
Naitoa Ah Kuoi (23, Chiefs, Bay of Plenty)
Quinten Strange (26, Crusaders, Tasman)
Isaia Walker-Leawere (26, Hurricanes, Hawke’s Bay)

Loose Forwards
Billy Harmon (28, Highlanders, Canterbury)
Akira Ioane (28, Blues, Auckland)
Du’Plessis Kirifi (26, Hurricanes, Wellington)
Christian Lio-Willie (24, Crusaders, Otago)
Pita Gus Sowakula (28, Chiefs, Taranaki)
Cameron Suafoa (27, Blues, North Harbour)

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Halfbacks
Folau Fakatava (23, Highlanders, Hawke’s Bay)
Brad Weber (32, Chiefs, Hawke’s Bay)

First-five-eighths
Brett Cameron (26, Hurricanes, Manawat?)
Stephen Perofeta (26, Blues, Taranaki)

Midfielders
Jack Goodhue (27, Crusaders, Northland)
Alex Nankivell (26, Chiefs, Tasman)
Billy Proctor (24, Hurricanes, Wellington)
Bailyn Sullivan (24, Hurricanes, Waikato)

Outside Backs
Sam Gilbert (24, Highlanders, Otago)
AJ Lam (24, Blues, Auckland)
Ruben Love (22, Hurricanes, Wellington)
Etene Nanai-Seturo (23, Chiefs, Counties Manukau)
Jona Nareki (25, Highlanders, Otago)

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The All Blacks XV assemble on 29 June, travelling to Tokyo where they compete for the 2023 Lipovitan-D Challenge Cup kicking off Saturday 8 July, at Tokyo’s historic Chichibunomiya Rugby Stadium in Tokyo before a second match on Saturday, July 15 at Egao Kenko Stadium in Kumamoto.

Via Press Release/All Blacks

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Comments

9 Comments
C
ColinK 522 days ago

I wonder what Hoskins Sotutu has done wrong? Not in the top two squads rather odd. Surely form is not the only factor here.

b
by George! 522 days ago

What did Tom Robinson do to not make this squad?

J
Jmann 522 days ago

Whilst the lossies and backs are world class the tight five is weak AF

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JW 34 minutes ago
Why England's defence of the realm has crumbled without Felix Jones

This piece is nothing more than the result of revisionist fancy of Northern Hemisphere rugby fans. Seeing what they want to see, helped but some surprisingly good results and a desire to get excited about doing something well.


I went back through the 6N highlights and sure enough in every English win I remembered seeing these exact holes on the inside, that are supposedly the fallout out of a Felix Jones system breaking down in the hands of some replacement. Every time the commentators mentioned England being targeted up the seam/around the ruck or whatever. Each game had a try scored on the inside of the blitz, no doubt it was a theme throughout all of their games. Will Jordan specifically says that Holland had design that move to target space he saw during their home series win.


Well I'm here to tell you they were the same holes in a Felix Jones system being built as well. This woe is now sentiment has got to stop. The game is on a high, these games have been fantastic! It is Englands attack that has seen their stocks increase this year, and no doubt that is what SB told him was the teams priority. Or it's simply science, with Englands elite players having worked towards a new player welfare and management system, as part of new partnership with the ERU, that's dictating what the players can and can't put their bodies through.


The only bit of truth in this article is that Felix is not there to work on fixing his defence. England threw away another good chance of winning in the weekend when they froze all enterprise under pressure when no longer playing attacking footy for the second half. That mindset helped (or not helped if you like) of course by all this knee jerk, red brained criticism.

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