Brian Moore, the former Lions and England hooker, summed up the mood of all Lions fans in a single tweet, saying that things could, potentially, get even worse for Gatland and his squad.
"Frightening thing is that New Zealand are likely to get better over the next two games," tweeted Moore.
Experienced London Telegraph writer Mick Cleary also lamented the gulf in class.
"This was not a fairy-tale but a recurring nightmare," Cleary wrote.
"You compete, you contest, but you are simply blown away by the clinical execution of the opposition.
"It wasn't that the Lions were inept. It was that the outcome had a sense of inevitability about it."
Like most British pressmen, Cleary lamented the Lions' inability to take their chances, comparing the lack of execution to their clinical opponents.
"The All Blacks are the most potent side in the world in the red zone, an area that extends the length of the pitch as far as they are concerned, while the Lions have left tries out there right throughout the tour," Cleary told his readers.
"The All Blacks, by contrast, delivered, the man in black with the cold-eyed ability of the assassin. One shot is all that they need."
Cleary also added the All Blacks had exploded the myth of northern hemisphere forward superiority.
"In the macho posturing that attends such north versus south battles, it is often claimed that European teams have the whip hand when it comes to forward play. If there was one match that proved that such a theory was bunkum it was this one."
Writing in the Daily Mail, Chris Foy said the tourists were "pounded into submission".
"In a match which made a mockery of rugby stereotypes, Warren Gatland's side illuminated this thunderous first Test with counter-attacking brilliance, but they were emphatically over-powered by the world champions," wrote Foy.
"New Zealand were direct and brutally efficient as they won the physical battle hands down.
"The expectation was that this would be a clash of styles; Kiwi sorcery pitted against British and Irish might. In the event, such expectations were turned upside down. Steve Hansen's pack dominated their rivals and the entire home side played with a relentless, primal intensity."
Paul Rees, writing in the Guardian, also referred to the way the All Blacks out-foxed Gatland and the Lions with unexpected tactics.
"New Zealand have shattered images throughout their history, playing in big matches in a way they were not expected to as they take on a team at its strongest point and the first Test was almost a role reversal," he wrote.
"It was New Zealand who won the physical battle, controlling the breakdown and the scrum, and playing the game in their opponents' half while the Lions were at their most dangerous on the counterattack, as they showed with their opening try which evoked memories of the Gareth Edwards score for the Barbarians against New Zealand in 1973."
The UK press were also taken with the individual performances of Kieran Read and Aaron Smith.
"The All Black No 8 has become just the sort of go-to leader that his predecessor Richie McCaw was: selfless, rugged and wholly committed despite the fact that he had not played for seven weeks with a thumb injury. It looked as if he had never been away," Cleary wrote of Read.
The Times of London acknowledged "this was a great contest, and the greater team won".
"The Lions threw shafts of light upon the game, but the All Blacks were bright from start to finish. They take the first rubber in the series, and the question now is whether the Lions can salvage enough hope, confidence and learning from their performance to go up a level into Wellington next week."
Writing in the Independent, Jack de Menezes summed up the dilemma facing Gatland and the Lions with the world champions sniffing the scent of a series victory.
"Like a seasoned champion, the All Blacks rallied and showed exactly why they are the undisputed kings of rugby and, come the final bell, you wondered what it would take to beat this side."
