KEY POINTS:
Graham Henry put up a defensive screen every bit as good as the one his players mounted last night.
The All Black boss reckoned his troops showed enough attention to the basics and by the final quarter were combining well enough to hint at a brighter second test.
"I think we did pretty well and the guys as individuals played well," he said. "We were a bit lateral in the first half and should have been more direct but I think by 80 minutes our combination work was better. We scored 42 points, which we are happy with."
It was that lack of directness that the coaching panel will set about fixing this week. It was very un-All Black to see the ball go wide, wide without any runners straightening or changing the point of attack.
If it hadn't been for Ali Williams and Aaron Mauger, the All Blacks would have offered very little attacking threat in the first half. By the final quarter, others stepped up and the black machine had more of an edge.
Mauger, in particular, was a constant threat in midfield and assistant coach Wayne Smith was sure the Canterbury second-five had enjoyed his best for two years.
"His running game was very good," said Smith. "We know he is a good distributor but we asked him to be more aggressive in attack and to be more penetrative, which he did.
"He was also very positive for Nick Evans when he came on. He is one of those second-fives who helps the first-five. He communicated well and was a big influence on Nick's performance."
It's possible that Evans might start at No 10 this week as Dan Carter took a knock on his ankle which is not rated serious but might restrict his training workload during the week.
Captain Richie McCaw is also likely to have a reduced week after taking a whack on his hip early in the game and a second one near half-time that forced him from the field.
Reports from the other injured squad members were more encouraging, with Byron Kelleher, Jerry Collins, Anton Oliver, Mils Muliaina and Conrad Smith all expected to be available.
"There is lots to work on," Henry said. "That was our first run for six months and the weather opened a few areas that were made worse. But we were creating opportunities and that's great. We will have to nail them next week but if we weren't creating opportunities I would be worried."
