The All Blacks lurched to a 41-10 victory over Tonga in the first game of Rugby World Cup on Friday, with coach Graham Henry far from satisfied with his team's error-ridden performance.
New Zealand led 29-3 by the end of the first half at Eden Park, with Dan Carter kicking the first points of the tournament with a penalty in front of a 60,000-strong crowd in Auckland.
While the All Blacks impressed in the first action-packed 40 minutes, the same could not be said the second half.
Tonga held on to the ball for long periods and put the New Zealanders under pressure, and the home side made too many handling errors that would be punished by stronger teams.
Richard Kahui and Israel Dagg were the standouts for the home side, with two tries apiece in the first spell, while Jerome Kaino and Ma'a Nonu scored one try.
Kurt Morath landed a penalty for Tonga to get them on the board, while Alisona Taumalolo was the only try-scorer.
Henry blamed the long build-up for his team's poor performance, saying the All Blacks were no better than average at times - even though there were spells where he felt they played well.
"We have been waiting a long time for this and perhaps we weren't as free as we normally are."
A bonus point for scoring four tries was assured by half-time but a ragged All Blacks side emerged for the second, and they ended the match having conceded an unusually high 13 penalties.
Henry says there's plenty to work on and gave them a mark of just five out of 10. He will have a week to iron out the kinks before the All Blacks play their second Pool A match against Japan in Hamilton next Friday.
Result
New Zealand: Tries: Israel Dagg (2), Richard Kahui (2), Jerome Kaino, Ma'a Nonu. Penalty: Dan Carter. Conversions: Carter (3), Colin Slade.
Tonga: Try: Alisona Taumalolo. Penalty: Kurt Morath. Conversions: Morath.
Referee: George Clancy (Ireland).
