Sonny Bill Williams makes New Zealand comeback

Sonny Bill Williams is set to make his first appearance for New Zealand in the ongoing Rugby Championship after he was named in the starting line-up for the game against Argentina to be played in Buenos Aires.

Jordie Barrett drops out of the matchday 23 squad while Ben Smith moves to fullback with Waisake Naholo taking the place at wing. Williams, who last played during the June series in France makes a comeback to much awaited 12 position with Ryan Crotty moving to outside centre.

TJ Perenara replaces Aaron Smith at scrum-half and it will be his 50th Test appearance for the All Blacks and a rest to Kieran Read meant Luke Whitelock will start at number eight. The other changes sees injured Liam Squire making way for Shannon Frizell while Ofa Tuungafasi starts in the place of Owen Franks.

Aaron Smith, Anton Lienert-Brown and Richie Mo’unga will provide cover from the bench that also has Nathan Harris and Angus Ta’avao drafted in.

“We’ve picked what we believe is the best team for this particular Test match,” said New Zealand head coach Steve Hansen.

“Argentina are a very good side who have shown they can win both away and at home. They’re full of confidence and self-belief which will make them a very dangerous beast.

“From a selection point of view, we’ve always seen these next two Test matches as a great opportunity to replicate the knockout stages of the Rugby World Cup, where we’ll have to beat quality teams back-to-back if we are to keep advancing in the Tournament. One of the keys to achieving this will be a consistency of selection, and that’s why we haven’t made too many changes this week.

“We’ve taken some key learnings from the loss to South Africa, which we look forward to implementing on Saturday. Our week’s preparation starts off the field with our individual and collective clarity and builds during the week through our trainings."

New Zealand are already at the top of the table and a bonus point win on Saturday could see them clinch their third consecutive Rugby Championship title.

New Zealand: Ben Smith, Waisake Naholo, Ryan Crotty, Sonny Bill Williams, Rieko Ioane, Beauden Barrett, TJ Perenara, Luke Whitelock, Sam Cane, Shannon Frizell, Scott Barrett, Samuel Whitelock (c), Ofa Tuungafasi, Codie Taylor, Karl Tu’inukuafe

Replacements: Nathan Harris, Tim Perry, Angus Ta’avao, Patrick Tuipulotu, Ardie Savea, Aaron Smith, Richie Mo’unga, Anton Lienert-Brown