This was closer in nature to the performance the country has been waiting for – the first non-ambiguous sign the All Blacks are heading undeniably in the right direction under coach Scott Robertson.
Unlike the two wins against England, this victory was never in doubt, produced more answers than questions and had an old-school sense of the All Blacks being angry.
The All Blacks had all the expected attributes that are typically evident the week after a shock defeat – energy, urgency, big hits on defence and improved accuracy.
But more significantly, they unveiled, at last, a far greater sense about how they want to play – how they are going to marry direct, aggressive ball-carrying with a smart, short-kicking repertoire and break teams with the power of their scrum, the speed at which they play and variety of threats they pose.
This was easily the most imaginative and cohesive performance of 2024. There was purpose to the kicking game and a depth of research to have identified that there was space sitting behind the Pumas frontline of defence.
There was more astute game management, no mad decisions to play in the wrong part of the field and the rugby looked simple and the players had a high degree of comfort with it.
This was the sort of rugby that had everyone clamouring for Scott Robertson to be All Blacks coach two years before he was.
There will be a touch of disappointment and frustration that the whole thing wasn’t rammed into fifth gear early in the second half to obliterate Argentina and make a commanding statement, but there was still more than enough evidence produced in the first 50 minutes to be feeling that the All Blacks aren’t stuck in a muddle and drifting nowhere in particular.
Some caution, too, needs to be applied as Argentina looked flat, passive and tired and so there was perhaps an exaggerated sense of how good the All Blacks were – their destructive nature potentially exaggerated.
But maybe Argentina were made to look slow and tired in comparison, not because they actually were, but either way, the All Blacks at Eden Park were everything they weren’t last week in Wellington – direct, urgent, brutal, clinical and innovative.
They were quicker in everything they did, from recycling possession, to chasing kicks, to getting to the breakdown.
And critically, TJ Perenara – his selection for this game universally questioned and his performance last week widely maligned – facilitated a higher-tempo game from the All Blacks.
His ability to keep the ball buzzing about enabled the All Blacks to build their phases more effectively, to change the point of attack with more precision and transition from defence to attack with the sort of alacrity that left the Pumas chasing shadows.
Of course, what helped him deliver a snappier, faster performance was the work of the pack, who, to a man, were obviously stung deeply by their effort in Wellington and felt a collective responsibility to respond.
This was the first truly dominant performance from the All Blacks pack this year.
There was a newfound energy about them, a darker streak to their mood and they emanated a stronger collective sense of being the hunter rather than the hunted.
Ardie Savea, strangely quiet and ineffective last week, was back to something close to his best, his desire to get his hands on the ball and bowl people over was infectious.
When he’s bouncing through defenders, pumping his legs and fighting for every inch, it’s madly influential in lifting those around him.
Tupou Vai’i, handed the challenge of being the team’s senior lock, played as if he liked the responsibility he’d been given and there was a general lift in the collision work, cleanout accuracy.
And Ethan Blackadder gave a performance that was impossible not to admire for its sheer enthusiasm, unrelenting effort and commitment.
Everyone looked hungrier and more dynamic as if they had switched their mindset from trying to run at defenders to trying to run through them.
And what no doubt helped the forwards build their confidence was the ease with which they destroyed the Pumas scrum.
There was no contest last week – as in, literally no contest because there were only four scrums and the first one was set after a staggering 60 minutes had passed.
There was no contest in Auckland, as in, the Pumas didn’t stand a chance of competing against what was a fearsome All Blacks piece of weaponry and a prolific generator of penalties.
