At long last, Sunday’s Bledisloe Cup opener in Wellington will put an end to almost an entire year without international rugby.
Not since South Africa hoisted the Webb Ellis Cup in November last year have two top-tier rugby nations competed on the pitch.
The deck is stacked against Australia, with a new coach, four international debutants and the challenge of quarantine before you consider the formidable opponents.
It’s been 19 years since the Wallabies have won away to New Zealand, and the All Blacks are hungry to start their own new chapter under first-time coach Ian Foster.
Captain Sam Cane, in his first outing as appointed skipper, said the All Blacks didn’t need to tap into their World Cup semi-final exit for motivation.
“It’s the start of a new era and the Bledisloe Cup is on the line,” he said, matter-of-factly.
“We want to go out there and put the first mark in the sand and win that.”
In his own first outing with the Wallabies, Wellington-raised Dave Rennie will blood Harry Wilson, Hunter Paisami and Filipo Daugunu against the world No.2s.
Flyhalf Noah Lolesio is likely to debut off the bench, while Jake Gordon could also come into play for just his second outing in gold.
Win or lose, the Wallabies can at least celebrate captain Michael Hooper’s 100th Test.
Hooper said the afternoon kickoff, at 4pm local or 2pm AEDT, gave him a new experience in his milestone match – which could also help with any pre-match butterflies in the stomach.
“It’s great playing in the afternoon. I’ve never played an afternoon Bledisloe,” he said.
“The beauty of an afternoon game is there’s not an extended draw out to the game.
“You wake up, you have breakfast, maybe have a bit of an activation at some point and before you know it you’re on the bus.”
While there will be around 30,000 fans in Wellington’s Sky Stadium, the match disappointingly won’t be a sellout.
Almost all adult tickets cost $NZ150 ($A138), with more for premium seats, as NZ Rugby looks to maximise revenue from its COVID-hit season.
After a domestic season with capped crowds, Hooper said he was happy to be playing in front of any audience, even if its passionately pro-Kiwi.
“(30,000 is) about 25,000 more than we’re used to thanks to COVID,” he said.
“There’s just another level of excitement for guys, particularly with the crowd.
“It’s going to be loud in there and we’re just so excited. We are lucky that we’ve get we get to kick off international Tests again and what a way to do it with the Bledisloe.”