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New Plymouth - The All Blacks have turned their sights on Wales for a touch of rugby reality after their season-opening runaway win over Ireland left questions about their fitness unanswered.
The All Blacks class of 2010 has plenty to prove, but an Irish "brain explosion" meant New Zealand's 66-28 runaway gallop against Ireland here on Saturday deprived them of an opportunity to do so.
New Zealand now play Wales in Dunedin next weekend, and coach Graham Henry is looking for tougher outing than the one against Ireland to gauge his side's competitiveness.
With the Tri-Nations series less than a month away, and the World Cup looming in 15 months, the All Blacks saw the June Tests against Ireland and Wales as a yardstick to measure their progress.
But, according to All Blacks captain Richie McCaw, the Ireland Test was as good as over after just 14 minutes when Irish backrower Jamie Heaslip was red-carded for kneeing McCaw in the head.
The offence cost Heaslip a five-week suspension and the All Blacks a solid workout.
"That was just a brain explosion by a very good footballer. That's a pity and he's going to suffer for it, and the Irish suffered for it and he will suffer the consequences in the future," Henry said.
Ireland's woes continued when Ronon O'Gara was yellow-carded soon after Heaslip left the field and, with the Irish down to 13 men, the All Blacks piled on 21 points in 10 minutes.
They led 38-7 at half-time and stretched that to 52-7 midway through the second half before Ireland came home with three late consolation tries.
For less than 15 minutes both sides had 15 players on the field and, while the All Blacks were in command of the opening exchanges, it was not long enough to draw any firm conclusions.
There were also worrying signs for the All Blacks, who blooded six new Test debutants in the match, as they lost concentration in the second half, allowing Ireland to retain possession for long periods and score three tries.
"I think we got a bit loose in the second half, lost our intensity and that's something we can build on... we didn't look after the ball in the tackle in the second half," Henry said, also pointing to a possible fitness issue.
"There was a lot more running in the game and because the players hadn't played for a few weeks they found that difficult. They ran out of a little gas actually in the last 20 (minutes)."
Asked whether he expected Wales to be a tougher proposition, Henry said: "Yeah, probably... I think it will be a difficult Test match in Dunedin."
Ireland captain Brian O'Driscoll acknowledged that his side was outplayed but was not willing to overpraise the All Blacks.
"They'll be disappointed with some of their second-half performance but they played extremely well. I'm not going to say they hit their top form, there's always room for improvement.
"If Wales start well and get into a good mindset I'm sure they can do extremely well. But I've got other things on my mind than wishing Wales well," he said, before quipping that what Wales needed most was to keep 15 players on the field.
The All Blacks class of 2010 has plenty to prove, but an Irish "brain explosion" meant New Zealand's 66-28 runaway gallop against Ireland here on Saturday deprived them of an opportunity to do so.
New Zealand now play Wales in Dunedin next weekend, and coach Graham Henry is looking for tougher outing than the one against Ireland to gauge his side's competitiveness.
With the Tri-Nations series less than a month away, and the World Cup looming in 15 months, the All Blacks saw the June Tests against Ireland and Wales as a yardstick to measure their progress.
But, according to All Blacks captain Richie McCaw, the Ireland Test was as good as over after just 14 minutes when Irish backrower Jamie Heaslip was red-carded for kneeing McCaw in the head.
The offence cost Heaslip a five-week suspension and the All Blacks a solid workout.
"That was just a brain explosion by a very good footballer. That's a pity and he's going to suffer for it, and the Irish suffered for it and he will suffer the consequences in the future," Henry said.
Ireland's woes continued when Ronon O'Gara was yellow-carded soon after Heaslip left the field and, with the Irish down to 13 men, the All Blacks piled on 21 points in 10 minutes.
They led 38-7 at half-time and stretched that to 52-7 midway through the second half before Ireland came home with three late consolation tries.
For less than 15 minutes both sides had 15 players on the field and, while the All Blacks were in command of the opening exchanges, it was not long enough to draw any firm conclusions.
There were also worrying signs for the All Blacks, who blooded six new Test debutants in the match, as they lost concentration in the second half, allowing Ireland to retain possession for long periods and score three tries.
"I think we got a bit loose in the second half, lost our intensity and that's something we can build on... we didn't look after the ball in the tackle in the second half," Henry said, also pointing to a possible fitness issue.
"There was a lot more running in the game and because the players hadn't played for a few weeks they found that difficult. They ran out of a little gas actually in the last 20 (minutes)."
Asked whether he expected Wales to be a tougher proposition, Henry said: "Yeah, probably... I think it will be a difficult Test match in Dunedin."
Ireland captain Brian O'Driscoll acknowledged that his side was outplayed but was not willing to overpraise the All Blacks.
"They'll be disappointed with some of their second-half performance but they played extremely well. I'm not going to say they hit their top form, there's always room for improvement.
"If Wales start well and get into a good mindset I'm sure they can do extremely well. But I've got other things on my mind than wishing Wales well," he said, before quipping that what Wales needed most was to keep 15 players on the field.
