Australian coach Eddie Jones and his New Zealand counterpart Wayne Smith both opted for caution yesterday when they named their teams for Saturday's Tri Nations tournament showdown at Stadium Australia.
Jones made just one change, recalling lock David Giffin after suspension while bracketing injured winger Andrew Walker with Chris Latham to give Walker a chance to prove his fitness.
The All Blacks named the same team that beat South Africa 26-15 at Eden Park last Saturday as Smith and his co-selectors resisted the urge to rush star full back Christian Cullen back into action.
Cullen, regarded as one of the world's best full backs, will be on the bench for the match which will decide the destination of the Tri Nations trophy.
The All Black number jersey will again be filled by Leon MacDonald, who impressed in last weekend's victory over the Springboks.
Cullen, who has played only two matches in the past three months, takes over from Doug Howlett among the replacements.
Walker was dropped for the Wallabies' last test against South Africa after leaving the squad unannounced to visit his family and was replaced by Latham for the 14-14 draw in Perth.
He was recalled to the squad after apologising for his behaviour but will need to undergo fitness tests later in the week before Jones decides whether to risk him or not. He is suffering from acute tendinitis in his right kneecap.
"We'll give Andrew until Friday to see how his knee shapes up. Then we'll make a decision on who will start and who will come off the bench," Jones told reporters at the Wallaby training camp in Coffs Harbour before the team flew to Sydney.
Second-rower Giffin replaces Justin Harrison in an Australian team that needs to win the match to retain the Tri Nations title it won for the first time last year.
Giffin will partner Australian captain John Eales, who will be making his final Test appearance before retiring.
AUSTRALIA: M Burke; A Walker or C Latham, D Herbert, N Grey, J Roff; S Larkham, G Gregan; T Kefu, G Smith, O Finegan, J Eales (capt), D Giffin, R Moore, M Foley, N Stiles. Replacements: B Cannon, B Darwin, M Cockbain, P Waugh, C Whitaker, E Flatley, one to be added.
NEW ZEALAND: L MacDonald; J Wilson, T Umaga, P Alatini, J Lomu; A Mehrtens, B Kelleher; R Cribb, T Randell, T Flavell, C Jack, N Maxwell, G Somerville, A Oliver (capt), C Hoeft. Replacements: M Hammett, C Hayman, M Cooksley, M Holah, J Marshall, T Brown, C Cullen.
Referee: Tappe Henning (RSA)
