The Wallabies scrapped, tackled and pressured physically for nearly an hour before the ruthless All Blacks finished them 38-7.
You have to be prepared to go beyond 80 minutes and the fall off in the final 22 minutes took gloss off an encouraging opening at the MCG.
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The All Blacks’ superior firepower and clinical streak was there for all to see with four tries scored when the Wallabies were down to 14 men because of yellow cards.
The Kiwis repelled a strong Wallabies’ opening to the second half with centre Samu Kerevi held up over the tryline.
1 CARTER GORDON
Full credit to 22-year-old rookie Carter Gordon. He admirably stood up to the blowtorch of a Bledisloe Cup Test against the All Blacks.
It’s the start for him with this 50 minutes not the end.
His passing was crisp. His 45m clearing kick from near his own tryline midway through the first half was more like it after several kicks which didn’t come squarely off the boot.
He made a tackle and put his head straight into a counter-ruck on another occasion.
He also learnt how ruthless the All Blacks are to capitalise on any error.
At the 35-minute mark, his kick-off failed to go 10m. The All Blacks clinically turned a midfield scrum into the advance that turned into the Will Jordan try on half-time for a telling 19-7 lead.
2 ANGUS BELL
It was a troubling night on the prop front for the Wallabies with injuries but loosehead Angus Bell had an upbeat game.
His first strong carry in the opening 90 seconds set the tone for his game. He kept on carting the ball forward and having more match minutes under his belt after his long-term foot injury was very encouraging.
The Wallabies forwards had the upper hand for stretches of the first half but were unable to sustain it. Coach Eddie Jones had picked weapons to have a crack at the Kiwis. There were some good signs but there is a long way to go.
Winger Mark Nawaqanitawase was another standout early with his defence-shedding run to set up the Rob Valetini try.
3 SIZE MATTERED
Much was made of the size selected in the Wallabies pack.
Sure, kgs can make a difference but it was the attitude behind the size that made more of a difference.
There had clearly been plenty of work done on the Wallabies’ breakdown execution.
It paid off in the opening 15 minutes with two well-timed breakdown turnovers…one when Will Skelton used his long reach to pinch a ball off Aaron Smith’s platter at the back of a ruck and another when Rob Valetini got his hands on the ball.
4 CRUEL INJURY FOR ALAALATOA
The desolate look on the face of Wallabies prop Allan Alaalatoa said it all even before any scan was taken.
He had the look of a man who knew his World Cup dream was over with those little, can’t-believe-it shakes of the head.
Alaalatoa was prone on the turf after his left leg bore the brunt of a buckled midfield scrum.
Where does that leave the Wallabies for tighthead props if it is an Achiiles injury as suspected?
The Test return of Taniela Tupou couldn’t have come at a better time. Unfortunately, he lasted just over 20 minutes himself before damaged ribs forced him off.
Queensland prop Zane Nonggorr, who made his Test debut against the Springboks recently, is suddenly back in the picture for a Test in Dunedin next Saturday.
He’s fit and ready. Nonggorr was in action for club leaders Bond University in Brisbane on Saturday with one high-strength surge through three GPS defenders for a try from 5m out.
5 ELITE ALL BLACKS
The All Blacks are scary good when they smell blood.
The wounded Wallabies had just lost their second prop when the Kiwis went into overdrive to turn a competitive 19-7 scoreline into a runaway victory.
The Rieko Ioane try just after the hour mark was a classic of off-loading, speed and getting the ball to space.
Winger Mark Telea’s final stutter step freed up room and he put Ioane over.
If that is the last Australian fans see of All Blacks halfback Aaron Smith in a Bledisloe Cup Test, he left us with some wonderful moments of skill.
