61 mins: Now Australia steal a lineout! Again they try to run out of defence but Suaalii is hauled down and Lonergan has to box kick. New Zealand go to the sky in return so Donaldson tries a trick play, kicking crossfield flat to Wilson, but the skipper is nailed on the touchline.

There’s a free-kick against the Wallabies at the lineout so the All Blacks rush into the 22. Both Barrett backs are busy on the left edge, before Vaa’i gets to work. Play shifts back to the right inside 10m as the black surge comes in numbers. Australia are committed to defence, coming up at pace, but runner after runner hits and crosses the gainline. Phase after phase of quick recycled possession. So many runners showing, options everywhere, and it is inevitable when Taylor army scuttles over the line. Straightforward and unstoppable from the hosts.

McKenzie dabs over two more easy points and the gap now looks a comfortable one for New Zealand.

48 mins: The ball is quickly off the lineout so the All Blacks shift from left to right with Tupaea the target. Play returns infield with Roigard and McKenzie working through the phases, looking for the marginal gains. Jordan joins his pack in grinding towards the 22, then Carter tries to find a gap in open play. By phase 13 the ball is a blur, liquid phase footy from New Zealand, patient and crisp, and space opens up on the left edge with Jordan joining the attack and jinking through the line. Is there a support runner? Yes, but Lonergan works tirelessly to get his body in between Jordan and Sititi and scramble clear. Brilliant attacking and defensive rugby.

Australia get a good shove on New Zealand’s defensive scrum, forcing Roigard to hack a hurried clearance near his own line – and he gets great yardage on his left-footer, sending play close to halfway.

Wilson wins another lineout for the Wallabies and sets his team in motion. There’s a penalty advantage for offside on the ground so Australia expand – and how! The ball goes through a deep attacking line and the All Blacks are opened by a magnificent tap pass from Donaldson to Jorgensen who streaks through the defensive line. Wright is in support on his left shoulder and he carves an unstoppable line between wing and centre to dive over for a deserved early score. Jorgensen curls over the conversion.

Team News:

All Blacks:
Flyhalf Richie Mo’unga and winger Fehi Fineanganofo were both ruled out late in the week. Fineanganofo with delayed concussion symptoms, Mo’unga with a calf tear that will keep him on the sidelines for some time.

They join Ardie Savea (shoulder), Luke Jacobson (elbow), Anton Lienert-Brown (knee), Billy Proctor (shoulder), Caleb Clarke (shoulder), Ollie Norris (knee) and Patrick Tuipulotu (calf) on a significant injury list.

Damian McKenzie shifts from fullback to five-eighth with veteran Beauden Barrett slotting in the No 15. Barrett’s brother Scott, fresh off a non-playing sabbatical in which he dealt with foot and back injuries, has come straight into the second row.

Wallabies:
The Wallabies make just one enforced change to the starting XV that looked so good against the Springboks with Isaac Henry replacing the suspended Hunter Paisami. That means Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii remains on the wing after his impressive display in the air against South Africa.

There are more changes on the bench with Tom Hooper and Taniela Tupou returning to their clubs in Europe as the two-match Bledisloe Cup series falls outside World Rugby’s international window. Massimo de Lutiis and Nick Champion de Crespigny come onto the pine, along with fly-half Declan Meredith as Kiss returns to a 5-3 forwards-backs split.

15. Tom Wright, 14. Max Jorgensen, 13. Isaac Henry, 12. Len Ikitau, 11. Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii, 10. Ben Donaldson, 9. Ryan Lonergan, 8. Harry Wilson (c), 7. Fraser McReight, 6. Rob Valetini, 5. Jeremy Williams, 4. Lukhan Salakaia-Loto, 3. Allan Alaalatoa, 2. Brandon Paenga-Amosa, 1. Angus Bell.

Replacements: 16. Josh Nasser, 17. Aidan Ross, 18. Massimo De Lutiis, 19. Lachlan Shaw, 20. Nick Champion de Crespigny, 21. Tate McDermott, 22. Declan Meredith, 23. Harry Potter.

1. Ethan de Groot, 2. Codie Taylor (c), 3. Fletcher Newell, 4. Scott Barrett, 5. Josh Lord, 6. Tupou Vaa’i, 7. Peter Lakai, 8. Wallace Sititi, 9. Cam Roigard, 10. Damian McKenzie, 11. Leroy Carter, 12. Jordie Barrett, 13. Quinn Tupaea, 14. Will Jordan, 15. Beauden Barrett.

Replacements: 16. Asafo Aumua, 17. George Bower, 18. Pasilio Tosi, 19. Shannon Frizell, 20. Anton Segner, 21. Kyle Preston, 22. Rieko Ioane, 23. Josh Moorby.

Preamble

Hello everybody and welcome to live coverage of New Zealand v Australia in the opening match of the 2026 Bledisloe Cup. Kick-off at Auckland’s Eden Park is scheduled for 7.10pm local time (5.10pm AEDT).

Fans of sporting cliche: are you ready, because the Wallabies have reached ‘whisper it quietly’ status. That’s right, whisper it quietly, but Australia’s men’s rugby team might be quite good again. So much so they’re a genuine chance of competing at their most unhappy hunting ground, Eden Park, and can now look ahead to next year’s World Cup with a sense of excitement, not dread.

For the first time since 2017 the men in gold are enjoying a six-game unbeaten run. Granted, a third of those fixtures have been against Japan - and a below-par Italy offered little resistance – but the most recent matches have featured a two-Test tour of Argentina and a home victory over South Africa.

That outing against the Springboks offered particular cause for optimism. Yes, it wasn’t Rassie Erasmus’s first XV, and yes, the chaotic final 15 minutes probably should have ended in a come-from-behind away win, but for an hour the Wallabies played the world champions off the park and were well worth their 42-17 lead.

Following the groundwork laid by Joe Schmidt, Les Kiss is enjoying a rare honeymoon period in the coach’s box. Schmidt did the donkey work of exposing as many players as possible to Test level, whittling down the contenders to what is now a very talented core squad, most of whom have acquired decent international experience. Aside from the glaring absence of a quality five-eighth there is no reason to suspect this side on the rise cannot continue on an upward trajectory.

But if any venue in international sport is going to bring an ambitious upstart back down to earth it’s Eden Park. The All Blacks haven’t lost at their fortress since 1994, 53 Tests ago. The Wallabies haven’t popped champagne in the away sheds since 1986.

However, this is an injury ravaged New Zealand side, one still figuring out its identity under new coach Dave Rennie, and coming off the back of a bruising four-Test series against the Springboks, one that also included four midweek tour matches in South Africa.

When the weekly World Rugby rankings were released on August 24 today’s match-up would have pitted the top-ranked side on the planet against the number eight outsiders. At that time Australia were closer to the USA on the standings than their trans-Tasman rivals. Now it’s second v sixth, with the Wallabies a rounding error off England in fifth and within touching distance of Ireland in third.

A positive result for the visitors today will return the sport of rugby into one deserving of a backpage lead and fire the starting pistol on a mouthwatering World Cup on home soil. Should they do so, we won’t be talking in quiet whispers any longer.

I’ll be back with final team lists and more shortly. Please send me your emails and keep me company throughout the evening. The address is jonathan.howcroft.freelance@theguardian.com.