New Zealand vs. Argentina: Date, Time, Live Stream, TV Info and 2015 TRC Preview

The 2015 Rugby Championship kicks off on Friday with defending champions New Zealand welcoming Argentina to AMI Stadium in Christchurch.

With the Rugby World Cup taking place later this year, the Rugby Championship has been shortened to a single round of fixtures, as opposed to each Southern Hemisphere giant playing one another in home-and-away legs.

In a battle against the odds, Daniel Hourcade's South American visitors are hoping to claim their first-ever win against the All Blacks on Friday, having suffered defeat in each of their previous 18 attempts.

It's a tall order, but the Pumas will once again embrace their underdog status in the hopes of recording a piece of Rugby Championship history. Read on for all the fixture viewing details and match preview:

Date: Friday, July 17

Time: 8:35 a.m. BST/3:35 a.m. ET

Live Stream: Sky Go (UK)

TV Info: Sky Sports 1 (UK)

All Blacks Look to Match-Record Streak

Natacha Pisarenko/Associated Press

It's no secret that New Zealand are the most successful national team in the rugby world, and with that status comes a highly prolific record in Southern Hemisphere competition.

The All Blacks are the only team to have won the Rugby Championship since Argentina joined to usher in a four-team competition in 2012, and they are this year chasing their fourth successive competition crown.

That streak of success would match New Zealand's record of four back-to-back Tri Nations series triumphs between 2005 and 2008, with Australia the only other team to ever win successive titles.

The All Blacks also have a heap of expectation upon them to retain their World Cup crown in England this year, but coach Steve Hansen says the "here and now" is all that matters, per the official Super XV website:

"

There has been a lot of talk about the Rugby World Cup and so forth, but this Test match is all about the here and now. It's important that we get away to a really good start in the Rugby Championship. ... We will need to get points early if we are going to give ourselves a chance of winning the Championship.

"

Experience is an obvious advantage in the New Zealand squad, but Friday also gives debutant Waisake Naholo his first steps in an All Blacks jersey after topping Super Rugby's try-scoring charts this year.

Richie McCaw and Dan Carter both start in what will be their final New Zealand appearances on home soil, giving the team that extra motivation to get this year's contest off to a good start.

Pumas Desperate to Overcome New Zealand Demons 

Sang Tan/Associated Press

As mentioned early, Argentina's record in games against New Zealand is a grim one, with a 21-21 draw in November 1985 being their best-ever result against the big guns of international rugby.

Talismanic centre Juan Martin Hernandez was a surprise omission for Friday's encounter as the Pumas fight for their honour, but Hourcade explained his decision to rest some European-based stars in place of domestic talent:

"

It's very difficult to mix the players that are playing in Europe and the (southern hemisphere) players. The players who are playing in Europe are in their rest season. They play a different style of rugby in a different calendar.

Our players at our base in Argentina play the same calendar as the one in the southern hemisphere but at a different level when you compare them to players in Super rugby.

"

Despite meeting on 20 occasions over the past 30 years, Friday's meeting will be just their second-ever time facing off in Christchurch, and Argentina's trip to Jade Stadium in 2001 was a forgettable one.

There, they succumbed to a 67-19 defeat to the All Blacks, the second-highest number of points they've ever conceded to Hansen's side and third-highest margin of defeat to the All Blacks (48 points).

But there is hope for Argentina in combating their southern peers. Last year saw Hourcade's men clinch their maiden Rugby Championship victory when they defeated Australia, showing things are moving in the right direction.

Admittedly, triumphing over an opponent of New Zealand's quality may still be a long way off, but Pumas captain Agustin Creevy will nevertheless lead a rebellious crusade in Christchurch.