NZ shake it up for Namibia game

New Zealand coach Steve Hansen has named his team to face Namibia in the Pool C clash at the Olympic stadium on Thursday.

The All Blacks have made 12 changes as only Sam Whitelock, Julian Savea and Nehe Milner-Skudder retain their position in the starting line-up that faced Argentina.

The 12 changes between two RWC matches equal a team record. After their 2007 pool match against Portugal they changed 12 in their starting line-up to face Scotland.

If Richie McCaw comes on as a replacement, it will be his 18th RWC match appearance, breaking the record of 17 he now shares with Sean Fitzpatrick.

There are 660 test caps' worth of experience on the All Blacks' bench (average 83) and also three test centurions (Tony Woodcock, Keven Mealamu and Richie McCaw).

Three replacement players with 100-plus test caps is a record for a Rugby World Cup bench. Before this match, no team had ever named more than one centurion on their bench in a Rugby World Cup match.