The Highlanders have named a powerful-looking side for their match against Racing 92 in Hong Kong tomorrow night.
Ten of the starting team played in the Super rugby final last year.
The backline includes star wingers Waisake Naholo and Patrick Osborne, midfielder Richard Buckman and first five-eighth Liam Sopoaga.
Matt Faddes gets an early chance to make an impression, getting a start at fullback with Ben Smith not having travelled to Hong Kong.
Faddes has played centre or the wing in the past couple of years for his club side and Otago, but has the ability to play fullback and it will be interesting to see how he performs.
Liam Squire gets the start at No 8 and he will team up with his provincial team-mate Shane Christie and Elliot Dixon in the loose forwards.
Christie will captain the side.
Joe Wheeler and Tom Franklin will be in the second row.
The duo were the preferred starting locks for the Highlanders last year before injury intervened.
Ash Dixon is the starting hooker.
There are 13 Highlanders reserves listed so there are likely to be wholesale changes made at halftime or into the second half.
Others who are likely to get their first run in a Highlanders jersey are hooker Greg Pleasants-Tate, prop Siosiua Halanukonuka, halfback Liam Howley and utility back Sio Tomkinson.
● The man blowing the whistle in the middle on Saturday night's game between the Highlanders and Racing 92 has a southern connection.
The match will be refereed by former Dunedin official Tim Baker.
Baker (33) is the Hong Kong union's referee development officer and is the top-ranked official in the Hong Kong region.
He has officiated in many games in the region and will head an all Hong Kong bunch of officials for the game.
Baker hails originally from Horowhenua and started refereeing in that area before he headed south for tertiary study.
He rose up the refereeing ranks in Dunedin and was a premier club referee.
He was picked for the South Island development squad, which controlled games at South Island age-grade tournaments.
He returned to Horowhenua in 2010 and shifted to Wellington, where he was part of the Central Zone development squad.
He moved to Hong Kong about 18 months ago.
Baker referees premier club matches in Hong Kong most weekends and officiated a test between South Korea and Japan last year.
He is also due to referee at the Junior World Trophy, for second-tier nations, in Zimbabwe in April.
Highlanders
Team to play Racing 92
Matt Faddes, Waisake Naholo, Jason Emery, Richard Buckman, Patrick Osborne, Lima Sopoaga, Josh Renton, Liam Squire, Shane Christie (captain), Elliot Dixon, Joe Wheeler, Tom Franklin, Josh Hohneck, Ash Dixon, Daniel Lienert-Brown. Reserves: Greg Pleasants-Tate, Brendon Emonds, Siosiua Halanukonuka, Jackson Hemopo, Sio Tomkinson, Liam Howley, Malakai Fekitoa, Tei Walden, Ryan Tongia, Marty Banks, Luke Whitelock, James Lentjes, Mark Reddish.