Hurricanes captain Brad Shields will return to the starting XV for his 100th Investec Super Rugby match against the Blues at Westpac Stadium on Saturday night.
Shields became the 14th member of the Hurricanes centurions club when he played against the Highlanders last month having made 99 Super Rugby matches and the dramatic draw against The British and Irish Lions in 2017.
The much respected Shields joins Tana Umaga, Rodney So'oialo, Ma'a Nonu, Andrew Hore, Neemia Tialata, Conrad Smith, Jeremy Thrush, Cory Jane, Victor Vito, Julian Savea, Dane Coles, Beauden Barrett and TJ Perenara to have played 100 matches for the club.
Shields missed last week's match against the Brumbies after he returned from South Africa following his test debut for England.
His return is one of six changes Hurricanes head coach Chris Boyd has made to the starting side from the line-up that lost to the Brumbies.
First five-eighth Beauden Barrett, who fulfilled the second of his All Black stand-down matches last week, returns while his brother Jordie moves from centre to fullback with Wes Goosen promoted to the No 13 jersey.
There is also a couple of positional changes with Julian Savea moving from the right to the left wing while Nehe Milner-Skudder moves from fullback to the right wing.
Boyd has also made four changes to the pack where lock Vaea Fifita and prop Ben May return along with Shields while the experienced Blade Thomson moves from the reserves into the starting XV.
Boyd said there was no shortage of motivation for the squad as they look to mark Shields' milestone in the right fashion while they were also desperate to maintain their proud home record and push for a quarterfinal to be played in front of their own fans at Westpac Stadium.
The Hurricanes have won their last six matches against the Blues, their best winning sequence against a New Zealand side.
Kick-off at Westpac Stadium is 7.35pm.
The Hurricanes squad to face the Blues is:
15 Jordie Barrett
14 Nehe Milner-Skudder
13 Wes Goosen
12 Ngani Laumape
11 Julian Savea
10 Beauden Barrett
9 TJ Perenara
8 Blade Thomson
7 Sam Henwood
6 Brad Shields (c)
5 Sam Lousi
4 Vaea Fifita
3 Ben May
2 Ricky Riccitelli
1 Toby Smith
Reserves
16 James O'Reilly
17 Fraser Armstrong
18 Jeff Toomaga-Allen
19 Michael Fatialofa
20 Gareth Evans
21 Jamie Booth
22 Ihaia West
23 Ben Lam
Fans can join Brad for his 100th Investec Super Rugby match against the Blues on Fan Appreciation Night at Westpac Stadium on Saturday. Simply click HERE and use promo code WELLINGTON to secure 30% off Adult tickets. The first 5,000 fans receive a complimentary rally towel and the first 500 fans receive a compliemntary Brad Shields commemorative poster.
