New Zealand vs. Australia: Date, Time, Live Stream, TV Info for Bledisloe Cup

Victory at Eden Park on Saturday is all that stands between Australia and their first Bledisloe Cup series win since 2002, but an alert New Zealand side won't allow the trophy to leave their grasp so easily.

An All Blacks win would see the series drawn at one win apiece, meaning the Bledisloe Cup stays with holders New Zealand, but Australia won't get many opportunities as great as this to seize some coveted silverware.

To make sure not a minute of Saturday's head-to-head is missed, we've gathered all the vital viewing information for the Auckland encounter, along with discussion of the fixture's key headlines.

Date: Saturday, August 15

Time: 8:35 a.m. BST/3:35 a.m. ET

Live Stream: Sky Go app (UK), SuperSport stream (SA)

TV Info: Sky Sports 3 (UK), SuperSport 1 (SA)

Anything But a Warm-Up

The nature of the 2015 landscape demands that teams look toward the Rugby World Cup as the "real" prize on offer, but no Bledisloe Cup can be treated as anything other than one of the fiercest clashes in the sport.

That being said, Australia coach Michael Cheika has made six changes to the team that won in Sydney last Saturday, with Stuff.co.nz writer Marc Hinton suggesting the cup will stay put as a result:

All Blacks helmsman Steve Hansen, on the other hand, has made just three changes to his lineup, with Sonny Bill Williams, Ma'a Nonu and Sam Whitelock coming into a XV that doesn't look any weaker for it.

With the Aussies having not won in New Zealand since 2001 and having last tasted victory in Auckland back in 1986, former All Black Nick Evans also took his opportunity to embarrass Australia, per talkSPORT's Andrew McKenna:

Nevertheless, what better encouragement is there for those second-stringers than to be fighting for a World Cup place against the best team in the world, where a dazzling performance means massive plaudits?

The World Cup might represent the "war" of 2015, but Saturday's tie promises to be one heck of a battle, where Rugby Championship winners Australia have more than mere pride at stake.

The Cooper Conundrum

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Arguably the most talked-about selection in the Wallabies XV for Saturday's fixture is the return of controversial fly-half Quade Cooper, a man who divides opinion like no other.

Some lacklustre outings in the Rugby Championship gave the player's doubters new ammunition to feed off, but Cheika continues to back the enigmatic Cooper, per Christy Doran of Fox Sports:

"

I believe in him (Cooper) a lot, as a person and as a player. Like I do in all my players.

I don’t think that’s fair to anyone if I don’t pick a player ... because of where we are playing. I don’t think that would be right by me. It would be weakness by me as well, if I was scared of that.

I just wanted to have a look at the combination of him (Cooper) and (Matt) Toomua together. They did play together a bit on the Spring Tour together and I like what they did together.

"

It would be folly to suggest there isn't an experimental angle behind Cooper's selection, with the competition provided by Matt Giteau, Bernard Foley and Toomua bearing down at fly-half.

But despite playing a heavy role in the Rugby Championship win, Foley may miss out on the World Cup, writes ESPN Scrum's Brett McKay, who believes Cooper to be a better option from the bench:

The real improvement for Cheika is likely to be at inside centre, with Toomua finally getting another chance to strut his stuff after featuring as a superb substitute option during the Rugby Championship win.

Just whether Cooper can offer that same impact from the first minute is up for debate, but another disappointment in Auckland could also lead to increased calls for the trickster's World Cup omission.