North has had a good Autumn series so far, scoring against Fiji last Saturday and putting in a promising performance in the centres against Australia.
But now he will be coming up against a team that has lost just the two matches since they lifted the Webb Ellis Trophy in 2011, and who showed their quality against England and strength in depth against Scotland over the past fortnight.
North lines up in a back three alongside Leigh Halfpenny and Alex Cuthbert, with Warren Gatland acknowledging that this is one of the most experienced teams available for selection.
"We are expecting another clinical performance from the All Blacks," he said. "We need to match their intensity and aggression.
"The players are obviously excited about the opportunity to face the number one side at a packed Millennium Stadium. We have named an experienced team and we are really looking forward to it."
Saturday's game is being shown live on the BBC.
WALES TEAM TO PLAY NEW ZEALAND
Autumn International
Millennium Stadium
Saturday, November 22nd, 2014
Kick off 5:30pm
15 Leigh Halfpenny (Toulon)
14 Alex Cuthbert (Cardiff Blues)
13 Jonathan Davies (Clermont Auvergne)
12 Jamie Roberts (Racing Metro)
11 George North (Northampton Saints)
10 Dan Biggar (Ospreys)
9 Rhys Webb (Ospreys)
1 Paul James (Bath)
2 Richard Hibbard (Gloucester)
3 Samson Lee (Scarlets)
4 Jake Ball (Scarlets)
5 Alun Wyn Jones (Ospreys)
6 Dan Lydiate (Unattached)
7 Sam Warburton (Cardiff Blues)(capt)
8 Taulupe Faletau (Newport Gwent Dragons).
Replacements
16 Scott Baldwin (Ospreys)
17 Nicky Smith (Ospreys)
18 Rhodri Jones (Scarlets)
19 Luke Charteris (Racing Metro)
20 Justin Tipuric (Ospreys)
21 Mike Phillips (Racing Metro)
22 James Hook (Gloucester)
23 Liam Williams (Scarlets)
