Beauden Barrett to captain New Zealand against Barbarians

New Zealand fly-half Beauden Barrett has been named as the captain of the All Blacks side for their upcoming encounter against Barbarians at Twickenham on Saturday.

This will also be the first time, the 26-year-old will lead the New Zealand side that also features hooker Asafo Aumua, prop Tim Perry and outside back Matt Duffie on the bench.

New Zealand head coach Steve Hansen is expecting an exciting contest against the Barbarians in a power-packed Twickenham Stadium.

“We are very much looking forward to this great occasion which will be the 11th time we have played the Barbarians in their 127-year history.

“Not only is it a special occasion for the team, it’ll also be a particularly special day for Beauden as well as the three new All Blacks Asafo, Tim and Matt, who will be pulling on the All Blacks jersey for the first time. We congratulate them on their impending milestones.

“It’s very rare that we get the chance to play a non-Test match in the modern era and it’s given us the chance to give our full squad an opportunity to stake claims for future matches and gain valuable big-match experience.

“The expected crowd of 65-70 thousand will create a Test-like atmosphere and the quality of the opposition will also add to the occasion. It looks set to be a very entertaining match so those who come to the game shouldn’t go home disappointed.”

New Zealand squad for the clash against Barbarians: 15 David Havili, 14 Waisake Naholo, 13 Anton Lienert-Brown, 12 Ngani Laumape, 11 Seta Tamanivalu, 10 Beauden Barrett (captain), 9 TJ Perenara, 8 Jerome Kaino, 7 Ardie Savea, 6 Vaea Fifita, 5 Scott Barrett, 4 Luke Romano, 3 Nepo Laulala, 2 Nathan Harris, 1 Kane Hames

Replacements: 16 Asafo Aumua, 17 Tim Perry, 18 Jeffery Toomaga-Allen, 19 Patrick Tuipulotu, 20 Sam Cane, 21 Tawera Kerr-Barlow, 22 Lima Sopoaga, 23 Matt Duffie