Coach Frank Hadden confirmed the worst fears of Scotland supporters. He's sacrificing a win to the rampaging All Blacks.
Two uncapped players -- prop Alasdair Dickinson and flanker John Barclay -- were among 13 changes announced on Friday to the Scotland team which beat Romania 42-0 on Tuesday.
Speculation was rife for months on whether Hadden would make the controversial choice to play his B side against New Zealand today at Murrayfield and save his first-choice players for the more winnable game against Italy next week to decide runner-up in Pool C and a spot in the quarter-finals. The All Blacks, undefeated against the Scots for 102 years, are the second game of three for Scotland in an 11-day span.
Hadden said it was an easy decision and finalized his lineup 20 minutes after Tuesday's match. He waited that long only to determine any injuries, and had a full, 30-man squad available. He immediately announced the lineup to his squad so it could mentally prepare.
"It's not a normal situation and unusual situations often require unusual solutions," Hadden said. "To me it makes complete sense. Three games in 11 days was a tough ask even in amateur days."
"You consider if you have any chance against New Zealand with a tired team or a fresh team, or have a chance of taking on Italy with a tired team or fresh team?" he said.
"The first criteria is to pick a team to win the match. I am confident this Scotland team will undoubtedly do their country proud," Hadden said.
He denied he was discounting the expectations of fans who had paid up to ?150 (US$303) for a ticket.
Only Simon Webster and Chris Paterson are retained from the Romania game.
Scott Murray will lead the team for the first time in three years. Chris Cusiter starts at scrumhalf following the twisted ankle which kept him out of the opening win over Portugal, and center Andy Henderson plays for the first time since the warmup match against South Africa when he suffered a leg injury.
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