Delany, Ellison and Smith to make debut, with So'oialo captain

A trio of new All Blacks backs, Mike Delany, Ben Smith and Tamati Ellison will make their Test debuts this weekend while Rodney So'oialo will captain the All Blacks, with All Blacks Coach Graham Henry and his Assistant Coaches Steve Hansen and Wayne Smith today naming the team to play Italy in the historic Test at San Siro Stadium, Milan, on Saturday 14 November, in the third Test of the All Blacks Telecom Northern Tour.

The team is:

1. Wyatt Crockett (2 Tests) 2. Corey Flynn (5) 3. Neemia Tialata (39) 4. Tom Donnelly (3) 5. Anthony Boric (10) 6. Liam Messam (2) 7. Tanerau Latimer (3) 8. Rodney So'oialo (61, captain) 9. Andy Ellis (11) 10. Mike Delany - uncapped 11. Sitiveni Sivivatu (40) 12. Luke McAlister (28) 13. Tamati Ellison - uncapped 14. Ben Smith - uncapped 15. Cory Jane (10)

Reserves:

16. Andrew Hore (45) 17. John Afoa (21) 18. Jason Eaton (15) 19. Richie McCaw (78) 20. Jimmy Cowan (29) 21. Stephen Donald (17) 22. Mils Muliaina (79) Bay of Plenty first five-eighth Mike Delany, who was the second highest points scorer in this year's just completed Air New Zealand Cup domestic rugby competition, will wear the number ten jersey outside halfback Andy Ellis, with Wellington's Tamati Ellison at centre outside Luke McAlister. Otago's Ben Smith will pair with Sitiveni Sivivatu, who returns from suspension, on the wings, while Cory Jane gets his third start of the All Blacks Telecom Northern Tour, moving to fullback.

In the forwards, Wyatt Crockett and Neemia Tialata will prop up the front row alongside hooker Corey Flynn; Tom Donnelly and Anthony Boric are the locking duo; with Liam Messam at blindside flanker, Tanerau Latimer at openside flanker and So'oialo at number eight.

The All Blacks bench packs a wealth of experience with Andrew Hore, John Afoa, Jason Eaton and regular All Blacks captain Richie McCaw providing cover in the forwards and Jimmy Cowan, Stephen Donald and Mils Muliaina in the backs.

All Blacks Coach Graham Henry said: "We said before the Telecom Northern Tour that we would give players the opportunity to put their hands up for selection for the All Blacks here and in the future and we are giving players that chance. We have picked a team of youth and experience, they have worked well in training and hopefully they can take that into the game."

So'oialo, who has played against Italy twice, will captain his country for the fifth time after leading the side in three Tests against South Africa and Australia in 2008, and against Samoa in New Plymouth last year.

"It's exciting for me to again be captaining the All Blacks, especially for what is shaping up to be a fantastic occasion. The All Blacks are playing in a new city in front of a sold-out home town crowd in one of Europe's most famous stadiums. The players are expecting a huge challenge this weekend," So'oialo said.

The All Blacks have played Italy 10 times since 1987 and are unbeaten against the Azzurri The last Test was in June this year in Christchurch, when the All Blacks won 27 - 6. The All Blacks have played in Italy three times: in Bologna in 1995, Genova in 2000 and Rome in 2004.