After their thumping quarter-final victory over France, the All Blacks head to Twickenham full of confidence ahead of their semi-final against South Africa.
Steve Hansen's side played some of the best rugby in recent memory whilst overwhelming the French last week, and will hope for more of the same this Saturday.
New Zealand have been forced into one change ahead of the game, with prop Wyatt Crockett ruled out with a groin injury, with his place in the side going to Joe Moody.
Nehe Milner-Skudder and Dan Carter have overcome slight knocks, and will be ready to start on Saturday with Ben Franks taking Moody's spot on the bench for the Kiwis first match at Twickenham in the tournament so far.
Memories of the Beaver renewed with Moody elevation
Just two weeks ago, Joe Moody was not even in New Zealand's 31-man squad, and now he is starting at loosehead prop in a Rugby World Cup semi-final.
There are similarities with the story of Stephen Donald, nicknamed the Beaver, who was called-up to the Kiwi squad after injuries to a raft of fly-halves before slotting the winning penalty to lead his side to World Cup glory.
Moody will not have any family at Twickenham with him on Saturday after missing out on selection orginally. "My family had booked tickets to come over, but when I didn't make the initial squad they cancelled all their tickets, so nah there isn't anyone over here at the moment."
Chiefs prop-forward Pauliasi Manu has been flown over from New Zealand on standby incase the side are befelled with any more injuries to the front-row.
Backline remains intact after barnstorming performance
After scoring nine tries in the tremendous win over France, it is pretty clear that the Kiwis are turning on the style at the business end of the tournament. With plenty of changes made throughout the group stages looking for the perfect combinations, Hansen has stuck with his tried-and-tested backline for the semi-final.
The Smith trio (Ben, Conrad and Aaron) remain in the side, with last week's hat-trick hero Julian Savea and Milner-Skudder again selected on the wings. Ma'a Nonu looked back to his best and keeps the 12 jersey ahead of Sonny-Bill Williams, whilst Carter again starts at fly-half.
Kaino and Retallick back to their best
Last Saturday evening was the complete performance from the All Blacks, with very few mistakes made throughout the 80 minutes.
Jerome Kaino and Brodie Retallick were the stand-out performers up front and looked to be in the form which make them World Cup favourites. Moody comes into the front-row to join Dane Coles and Owen Franks, with Sam Whitelock and Retallick completing a formidable looking front-five.
Richie McCaw will set a new record when he captains New Zealand for the 12th time at the World Cup, surpassing the likes of Sam Warburton and Martin Johnson.
Kiwis ready for step-up in opponents
After routing a admittedly-below par France side last week, the All Blacks are expecting a much tougher test when they face the Springboks.
Since defeat to the Japanese, the Springboks have looked formidable in reeling off four straight wins, including last week's quarter-final over Wales where they left it late before coming out on top.
The forward pack, and in particular Duane Vermeulen, Schalk Burger and Eben Etzebeth have been immense and pose a real threat at Twickenham.
Head coach Steve Hansen believes his side are ready for the upcoming challenge, "We've put a full stop on last weekend's performance and have been slowly building throughout the week to produce another game we can all be proud of."
"As a group we're really looking forward to this challenge. It will require a massive amount of intensity and composure and accurate skill execution."
"This team has high expectations of itself and enjoys the big occasions." Saturday's game certainly is worthy of being called a big occasion, with a World Cup final spot on the line for the winner.
How the All Blacks line up
1. Joe Moody, 2. Dane Coles, 3. Owen Franks
4. Brodie Retallick, 5. Sam Whitelock
6. Jerome Kaino, 7. Richie McCaw (captain), 8. Kieran Read
9. Aaron Smith, 10. Daniel Carter
11. Julian Savea, 12. Ma'a Nonu, 13. Conrad Smith, 14. Nehe Milner-Skudder, 15. Ben Smith
Replacements: 16. Keven Mealamu, 17. Ben Franks, 18. Charlie Faumuina, 19. Victor Vito, 20. Sam Cane, 21. Tawera Kerr-Barlow, 22. Beauden Barrett, 23. Sonny Bill Williams