All Blacks reveal 33-man Rugby World Cup squad to head to France

The All Blacks have named their 33-man squad to head to France for the 2023 Rugby World Cup with a split of 18 forwards and 15 backs.

New Zealand Rugby chair Dame Patsy Reddy introduced former captain Richie McCaw to announce the squad in Hawkes’ Bay in front of a packed local audience at Pettigrew Green arena in Napier.

Captain Sam Cane will lead Ian Foster’s side as they chase a fourth World Cup title in the side’s history.

The squad was largely similar to the Rugby Championship squad but recent All Black debutants Shaun Stevenson, Samipeni Finau and Dallas McLeod missed out on final selection. Josh Lord, who started against Argentina, was not named as they opted against extra lock cover despite concerns for Brodie Retallick.

Injury seems to have struck down Crusaders centre Braydon Ennor while one of the big surprises was the return of David Havili who completed a return to action for Tasman over the weekend.

The big surprise was Chiefs winger Emoni Narawa who made the final cut after his debut against Argentina a month ago. The 24-year-old has been battling a back issue since his first Test.

Despite coming under an injury cloud, lock Brodie Retallick has been named to attend his third Rugby World Cup alongside Sam Whitelock, Scott Barrett and Tupou Vaa’i in the second row.

Retallick is expected to be sidelined for four-to-six weeks which would see him miss the first two pool games.

With two extra squad spots available the All Blacks used them on an extra prop, taking the position total to six, and they named three first fives after only using two in 2019.

Joe Moody failed to return to fitness so the selectors went with starters Ethan de Groot and Tyrel Lomax, young props Fletcher Newell and Tamaiti Williams, and veterans Ofa Tu’ungafasi and Nepo Laulala.

Beauden Barrett, Richie Mo’unga and Damian McKenzie are the No 10s named but Barrett is likely to be used as a fullback. The outside backs were able to be boosted by the addition of Narawa as a result.

Neither Brad Weber or Folau Fakatava were able to displace Cam Roigard, Finlay Christie or Aaron Smith, who are the three No 9s selected.

They will open their campaign on September 8 with a blockbuster clash against home nation France, who recently fell below New Zealand in World Rugby’s men’s rankings.

The All Blacks will have one final hit out on August 25 against the Springboks at Twickenham before their campaign.

All Blacks Rugby World Cup squad:

Hookers (3): Dane Coles (Hurricanes), Samisoni Taukei’aho (Chiefs) Codie Taylor (Crusaders)
Props (6): Ethan de Groot (Highlanders), Nepo Laulala (Blues), Tyrel Lomax (Hurricanes), Fletcher Newell (Crusaders), Ofa Tu’ungafasi (Blues), Tamaiti Williams (Crusaders)
Locks (4): Scott Barrett (Crusaders), Brodie Retallick (Chiefs), Tupou Vaa’i (Chiefs) Sam Whitelock (Crusaders)
Loose forwards (5): Sam Cane (Chiefs) (captain), Shannon Frizell (Highlanders), Luke Jacobson (Chiefs), Dalton Papalii (Blues), Ardie Savea (Hurricanes)
Halfbacks (3): Finlay Christie (Blues), Cam Roigard (Hurricanes), Aaron Smith (Highlanders)
First fives (3): Beauden Barrett (Blues), Damian McKenzie (Chiefs), Richie Mo’unga (Crusaders)
Midfielders (4): Jordie Barrett (Hurricanes), David Havili (Crusaders), Rieko Ioane (Blues), Anton Lienert-Brown (Chiefs)
Outside backs (5): Caleb Clarke (Blues), Leicester Fainga’anuku (Crusaders), Will Jordan (Crusaders), Emoni Narawa (Chiefs), Mark Telea (Blues)