John Drake: Scoreline flatters pedestrian home side

Australia might be celebrating a test win but they haven't improved at all.

I believed South Africa would win the test in Brisbane, but then again, you can never underestimate how teams will respond when their backs are to the wall.

And the Wallabies had been getting it from left, right and centre during the week after their big loss to the All Blacks.

Still, despite winning well on the scoreboard, it was hardly impressive stuff from Australia. Neither side had improved on how they played against the All Blacks.

World rugby comes in two major styles at the moment. The first is the English or British approach, which is slow but incredibly precise and accurate.

New Zealand, and to a lesser degree France, move the ball wide.

The game has moved on from where the Wallabies are playing - turning the ball inside.

Neither Australia nor South Africa found the width to their game, with the Springboks in particular suffering because they lack confidence and cohesion. When they did try to get it wide, it was often at the wrong times, leaving players isolated.

It just wasn't an inspiring test match. Australia had a lot of ball, as they did against New Zealand, but the quality of possession and what you do with it are what count.

The Wallabies had a lot of slow ball, and it's probably a reason why Stephen Larkham - supposedly the linchpin of the Australian game - was a nonentity in this match.

The All Blacks should win well against the Springboks in Dunedin, although with expectations raised, no doubt the doom-and-gloom merchants will be back in force if the victory margin is small.

It is too much to demand and expect another 50-point effort, especially on a cold night in Dunedin, but it is not out of the question.

What John Mitchell and Robbie Deans will really be looking for is an improvement in the areas that were poor in earlier tests, particularly the lineouts and individual defensive lapses.

A week or so ago I would have suggested that Ali Williams be retained but I now believe Simon Maling deserves his chance.

He plays a tighter game than Williams, his presence would allow Chris Jack to return to his favoured loosehead side of the scrum, and Maling can be a lineouts master.

The disappointing aspect about Williams' game is that he is off the pace in the most important areas for a lock, especially the lineouts.

It is not a case of him being elevated beyond his level - he has what it takes to be a good test player, but his game has faded.

Williams is a confident character, though, and being dropped at this point will not wreck his future.

Maybe the other big selection debate will be at fullback. Mils Muliaina's recent form must have at least forced the selectors to consider switching from their original plan to have Leon MacDonald at No. 15.

If MacDonald is fit, he could come back in and take over the goalkicking. But there would be nothing wrong in retaining Carlos Spencer as the No. 1 goalkicker and allowing his confidence to build.

Spencer plays with a certain swagger for the Blues that has been missing in the All Blacks, but he appears to be growing in confidence. If he can gain that sort of command in the test arena, the rest of the rugby world can watch out.