They won and that is the main thing, but it was a far from convincing display the All Blacks put on to beat Samoa 25-16 in the first-ever meeting of the two teams in Apia.
It was no surprise that the Samoans brought bundles of energy and passion. They tore into the breakdowns and threw themselves into tackles, putting the All Blacks under pressure and depriving them of good balls to work with.
The intensity from the All Blacks though, was very much lacking. While they got the better of the scrums, eventually, the New Zealand forward pack did not bring the speed or accuracy to negate their physical opponents.
Of course it was only the first hit out of the season and often the All Blacks do look rusty in these, but it dangerous to put it all down to this.
Whether the mobility of the tight five is still at the standard required is questionable. Granted they have not seen game time for a few weeks, but you do not see Tony Woodcock or Keven Mealamu getting around the field at anywhere near the speed they used to.
When you are struggling for protection at the breakdown, you really need your tight five to step up and start getting to more rucks at a faster rate. But you really have to question whether those two are still capable of doing that, and if they cannot, whether they are still the best men to have in the squad, even as back-ups.
The All Blacks were not committing huge numbers to the breakdown, often having only one or two players over the ball to withstand the barrage of pressure coming from the Samoan cleaners. It was eerily similar to the tactics that proved to be the downfall for an ageing Springboks pack at the last World Cup.
Are these men being clung on to for too long?
Of the other tight forwards, Owen Franks got around the field well, but seems to have gotten into a habit of getting up offside and giving away penalties. Luke Romano battled with an eye swollen shut, although he was hardly a stand out, while Sam Whitelock and Brodie Retallick were both solid.
In the loose there was a bit of inconsistency, with good moments mixed in with some pretty average ones. Richie McCaw in particular led well from the front, attacking the breakdown strongly and getting around the park in typically impressive fashion.
The platform the forwards set was a shaky one and while they applied pressure to ensure they played the game at the right end of the park, it was not one the backs could be at their best from.
One try was all they could manage, as Dan Carter exploited the space created by the Samoan rushed defence, kicking the ball in behind and connecting with George Moala, who ran all the way to the line.
That was the beginning of the second half and at 19-3 it looked like the All Blacks were set to pull away.
But the Samoans had other ideas, bringing huge intensity over the next 30 minutes, forcing their way into position to kick two penalties and then score a try through rampaging flanker AlafotiFaosiliva.
In that time the All Blacks had managed just three points and with the score at 22-16, it was well and truly game on.
Yet aside from one other occasion where Samoa scrambled brilliantly, the All Blacks never looked like crossing the line. There were too many dropped balls and too many poor passes, making the job of a strong Samoan defence that much easier.
No doubt the lack of dominance up front did not help that. The Samoans were rarely on the back foot and always seemed to have time to organise their defensive line, or at least recover when they had too.
Come World Cup time, you know everyone is going to bring their best for the All Blacks when it comes to intensity.
It is all very well saying that this is a Samoan team playing in arguably the match of their lives, but that is what you are coming up against in a knockout match at the World Cup. Teams know they have to be at their best to beat the All Blacks and they get up for the game, just like we have seen from the French on multiple occasions.
Of course there are players to come back before then. Aaron Smith, Ma'aNonu, Conrad Smith, Julian Savea and Ben Smith are all certainties to be first-choice backs, while Dane Coles will return to the front row. None of these men were available, having played in the Super Rugby final in the weekend.
There were plenty of youngsters out there too, with George Moala, NepoLaulala, Brad Weber and Charlie Ngatai all making their first appearances in the black jersey.
But that should not be an excuse, particularly as the majority of the forward pack will remain intact.
Put it down to rust if you will. It is a starting point though. The errors need to be cut down, the speed needs to be increased and the physicality needs to be improved.
They are more than capable of doing all of that, as they are a class outfit. But it does show that they are not invincible and what can happen when you put this team under pressure.
None of that should take away from the huge effort Samoa put in though. As much as the All Blacks were poor, sometimes you can only play as well as the opposition lets you. On this day, the Samoans proved to everyone that they are worthy opponents and the NZRU will not be able to continue to ignore them as a legitimate opponent.
They could be a threat at the World Cup too. If they can play like this on a consistent basis, they are more than capable of knocking off some of the big contenders.
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