That’s the basic nature of test football in the golden age – it’s an 80-minute scrap to the death, because there is only the thinnest margin between the best sides.
What matters is that the All Blacks managed to absorb a few blows midway through the second half and not panic when they found themselves just two points ahead with 12 minutes to go.
They held steady, won a few big moments that wrestled the momentum back and the calm and composure that was so evidently missing in their record loss to South Africa made a welcome return in the last 10 minutes of this encounter.
The upshot then was that this was a victory built on resilience, a steady set piece and some supreme efforts by Cam Roigard, Ardie Savea and Leroy Carter.
Some mention is necessary, too, that Savea’s captaincy was strong and assured and the All Blacks played with a sense of belief and conviction when they were under the greatest pressure.
It was gutsy and measured rather than stylish and flowing – something it appeared on track to be when the All Blacks cruised out to a 20-3 lead midway through the first half.
It felt, then, that things could build nicely: that the All Blacks were going to use their scoreboard superiority to roar into life and deliver one of those vengeful Bledisloe responses that litter their past.
But Australia never felt the full brunt of the All Blacks’ fury because it never really came.
New Zealand had little moments of cohesion and fluidity, genuine stability in their set-piece and a few star turns – which were enough to get the job done.
And while it was never emphatic or overly impressive, it was enough for it to be declared a victory to the coaching panel for holding their nerve with both their selections and their strategy.
The argument was made that the record defeat to the Springboks was not as catastrophic as it may have appeared – that there was an element of exaggeration to it because of the All Blacks’ efforts to chase the game late in the piece.
That felt a touch tenuous and more wishful thinking than accurate analysis, but on the basis of how the team – which was largely the one so comprehensively beaten in Wellington – bounced back, the coaching team have to be given their due.
They called it right and their confidence that the return of Codie Taylor would fix the lineout proved spot-on. His experience and accuracy was part of the solution, but so too did the recall of Fabian Holland make a significant difference.
He was the go-to throw at the front and the Wallabies never got a look in at pinching anything from the touchline.
It was the return of Roigard, though, which made the greatest difference, not just to the pace of the attack, but its shape too.
He was artful and disciplined in the way he picked his moments to attack the Wallabies’ fringe defence around the tackled ball, and his ability to break the first tackle and get the All Blacks going forward was priceless.
The added benefit was that his menace forced the Australian fringe defenders to stay tight to the ruck and there was a fraction more time and space for the backline to play in.
Carter proved that his promising debut was not a case of beginner’s luck and the wing roamed across the park looking for work, made some telling tackles and was an eager and useful carrier.
The other big tick for the coaching team was the redeployment of Jordie Barrett in the back field where his height, size and bravery were utilised in defusing high balls.
But for all that it was a night of positives, there has to be an acknowledgement, too, that a few wildly inaccurate moments from Australia cost them dear.
There is an alternative universe where James O’Connor made touch with two penalties and put his side deep in All Blacks’ territory with momentum behind them.
In this same universe, there could have been a different referee – one not making the raft of unfathomable decisions as Italian Andrea Piardi did, the majority of which appeared to randomly penalise Australia more than they should have been.
What should be worrying for the All Blacks is that in the real universe, they were twice blown away by Australia’s driving maul – and so it’s not ridiculous to ponder what may have happened had O’Connor not missed touch.
Gregor Paul is one of New Zealand’s most respected rugby writers and columnists. He has won multiple awards for journalism and written several books about sport.
