Former Australian first-five-eighth Mark Ella on last night's Bledisloe Cup match.
In many ways yesterday's Bledisloe Cup went according to plan, with a much better performance from the Wallabies in Christchurch and a result that went the All Blacks' way 20 -10.
The Wallabies were gallant in defeat but no matter how much pride they recovered from a lacklustre performance in Melbourne one week ago, the fact is they continue to come second to an All Black side that refuses give the Wallabies an inch.
I thought the Wallabies had the greater run of play for much of the game, dominating possession and making New Zealand defend for much of the match, but as usual the All Blacks were up to the task.
Unfortunately much of the Wallabies attack - especially in the first half - was sideways, even though they controlled the ball and didn't allow the All Blacks defence to fluster them.
After three tries were scored in a flurry in the first fifteen minutes of the game, defence took over in an absorbing match that could have gone either way.
The inconsistent Wallabies have struggled to put together a decent showing against the All Blacks for a long time now but they played with a passion and commitment that has been severely lacking recently.
And while the record will show that their performance against the All Blacks is an embarrassing 9 - 0, they showed some of the potential which coach Robbie Deans has been promoting since he took on the Wallabies job three years ago.
The Wallabies backline finally had some bite to it, with Anthony Faingaa forming a strong centre combination with Adam Ashley-Cooper, whose size and strength created trouble for the All Blacks defence every time he touched the ball.
It was a game to be won but the Wallabies wasted at least three great try scoring opportunities with some sloppy passing which stopped them in their tracks and again highlighted their inconsistencies.
Deans will have a hard decision to make with the mercurial Quade Cooper returning to the squad for their match against the Springboks at the end of the month and the Wallabies' most experienced player, Matt Giteau, will be lucky to hold onto his spot in the team.
The All Blacks again showed what a great team that they are by holding their composure under constant pressure from the Wallabies.
The All Blacks had the better of the scrum although the Wallabies exerted all of the pressure at the lineout.
And while it wasn't the usual sublime performance from the All Blacks, it was enough to ensure that the Bledisloe Cup remains in New Zealand for another year.
After a month of bruising rugby against the Wallabies and Springboks the All Blacks will relish the opportunity to rest their players before stepping up again against the Springboks in Johannesburg on August 22.
The All Blacks have set the standard for the rest of the rugby world to follow and coach Graham Henry should be proud of what he and the players have achieved this year.
But as he will tell you, it is only the next game that matters.
