That first half - Sam Cane called it a clinic afterwards, and that's a pretty good description.

Everything the All Blacks did in that first 40 was pretty much perfect, and in fairly challenging conditions at times - it was pretty wet at kickoff. The rain did ease off for large parts of the game, but the execution of skills in those conditions was really impressive.

To their immense credit, the Pumas regrouped at half-time and were much more competitive after the break - the second half score was 7-all, but the damage was done by an utterly brilliant first half.

With TJ Perenara, it would appear rumours of his imminent demise have been somewhat exaggerated. He was tremendous last night - what a response to his challenging evening in Wellington.

That run and pass for Will Jordan's first try was sublime. His awareness to see the opportunity down the blindside and the skill to execute it, I bet he slept well last night.

Ethan Blackadder was absolutely terrific. 2 tackles, and he was still tackling in the 83rd minute at 42-10 ahead. It's the kind of workhorse performance that epitomises his approach to the game.

There was also a huge shift from Ethan Blackadder.

And it seems almost repetitive to mention Ardie Savea, but we have to. Just exceptional, yet again.

The stats only tell some of the story, but here they are:

18 carries and five defenders beaten, another try - his 27th in tests - he's level now with Richie McCaw as our highest try-scoring test forward.

He also gave the final pass for Caleb Clarke's try. And on the other side of the ball, 12 tackles and no missed tackles.

Afterwards, he said he demanded physicality from his team through words and actions.

"We'll lead and let the boys follow us."

Imagine having Ardie Savea as the guy to follow.

You'd run through brick walls and still be looking for the next one.

LISTEN ABOVE

That first half - Sam Cane called it a clinic afterwards, and that's a pretty good description.
Everything the All Blacks did in that first 40 was pretty much perfect, and in fairly challenging conditions at times - it was pretty wet at kickoff. The rain did ease off for large parts of the game, but the execution of skills in those conditions was really impressive.
To their immense credit, the Pumas regrouped at half-time and were much more competitive after the break - the second half score was 7-all, but the damage was done by an utterly brilliant first half.
With TJ Perenara, it would appear rumours of his imminent demise have been somewhat exaggerated. He was tremendous last night - what a response to his challenging evening in Wellington.
That run and pass for Will Jordan's first try was sublime. His awareness to see the opportunity down the blindside and the skill to execute it, I bet he slept well last night.
Ethan Blackadder was absolutely terrific. 2 tackles, and he was still tackling in the 83rd minute at 42-10 ahead. It's the kind of workhorse performance that epitomises his approach to the game.
There was also a huge shift from Ethan Blackadder.
And it seems almost repetitive to mention Ardie Savea, but we have to. Just exceptional, yet again.
The stats only tell some of the story, but here they are:
18 carries and five defenders beaten, another try - his 27th in tests - he's level now with Richie McCaw as our highest try-scoring test forward.
He also gave the final pass for Caleb Clarke's try. And on the other side of the ball, 12 tackles and no missed tackles.
Afterwards, he said he demanded physicality from his team through words and actions.
"We'll lead and let the boys follow us."
Imagine having Ardie Savea as the guy to follow.
You'd run through brick walls and still be looking for the next one.
LISTEN ABOVE

Weekend Sport with Jason Pine on Newstalk ZB brings you all the action and reaction to the sporting weekend.

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