The All Blacks had to fight hard to beat the Wallabies in Hong Kong on Saturday night, coming back from being 14-6 down to win 19-14 - in what really was a game of two halves.

The Aussies were definitely the better of the two sides in the first half, and didn't look to be affected by the long period off between Tests, whereas the All Blacks started off in less than ideal fashion.

The handling was poor, and there didn't seem to be any cohesion between the players - which seems strange, seeing that most of the players had some game time during the Air New Zealand Cup. The Aussies, on the other hand, were attacking out wide and making inroads against the All Black defensive line - which led to two trys, both scored by Drew Mitchell.

The only thing keeping the All Blacks in the game was the Wallabies poor discipline, which gave Dan Carter three penalty's to bring the score to 14-9 at half time.

However, the first half only got worse for the All Blacks as Andrew Hore went off injured with an ankle injury, forcing him out of the rest of the tour - he'll be replaced by Hika Elliot. This is a huge loss for the All Blacks, as Hore has started in every Test this year, and was putting a big gap between himself and the other hookers.

It's just fortunate that we have a handy backup in Kevin Mealamu - although his lineout throwing can be suspect at times.

The All Blacks got down to business in the second half, and started to play some enterprising rugby, which led to their first try scored by Sivivatu. Their passes started to stick, and they soon began to find holes in the Wallaby line.

Sivivatu had a hand in the second try, too, setting up Richie McCaw to give the All Blacks a 19-14 lead, which they would hold onto for the rest of the game.

The combination of Stephen Donald and Dan Carter did not work as well as it did in Brisbane, and for the first half it basically kept Carter out of the action. Donald was replaced by Ma'a Nonu in the second half, and Carter was back in the number 10 jersey (where he belongs). If they are to try this combination again, they have to put Donald at second five, leaving Carter to weave his magic at number 10.

Isaia Toeava had one of his best games for the All Blacks, and is starting to look more settled at Test level. He made some fantastic runs, including one where he broke through about five or six tackles. It's finally starting to look like Henry's persistence with Toeava is paying off.

The Wallabies will be disappointed that they couldn't push on in the second half, but they have nothing to blame but their own poor discipline. They were very lucky no one was sin binned, because there were times that someone should have been.

The All Blacks now head to Scotland, where they should have no trouble in maintaining their unbeaten run against the Scots. They have four Tests in four weeks, plus the midweek game against Munster - but for this squad that workload should be no issue.

As for the Test in Hong Kong, we think it was a complete success. They basically filled the stadium (there were only 300 seats left), and the players all seemed to enjoy mixing with the locals and helping to spread the game to Asia. Based on this game, there should be no reason why more Tests can't be played in Hong Kong.

If you haven't already heard, Dan Carter will line up against the Wallabies this Saturday in the number 12 jersey - which see's Stephen Donald move into first five for his first start as an All Black.

Carter and Donald combined well together in the last Test against Australia, but that was late in the game when Donald came on as a sub - not from the outset.

This is an interesting move by Graham Henry, who persisted with the dual pivots in last year's World Cup, playing Carter and Luke McAllister together. And, while it wasn't the reason we lost to France, it's clear that the combination of Carter and Ma'a Nonu has been working well - so why change it now?

Carter has played second five before - he actually began his Test career in the 12 jersey - but he is now established as the best first five in the world, and that's where he should be playing every game. Donald is a great player, and won't let the side down by any means, but when you've got the worlds best first five in your team you play him there.

The other strange selection is Greg Somerville, who is on the bench for this weekend's clash (he won't travel with the team to Britain). Somerville announced he was retiring from international rugby after the last Test in Brisbane, but has come to the aid of Henry as John Afoa and Ben Franks are carrying injuries, and are therefore unavailable.

Why isn't Jaime Mackintosh on the bench? He is obviously capable, otherwise they wouldn't have taken him on the tour - so bringing Somerville back for one Test seems like a waste of time, especially as the Test is a dead rubber in terms of the Bledisloe Cup.

It's not like the Aussie front row is anything to fear, either. To be honest, they've struggled to put a strong front row on the field for a few years now, and Mackintosh would have no trouble against them.

Hosea Gear is the only new comer to make his debut this week, and he will pair up with Sivivatu on the wing. Gear has been the best winger in the Air New Zealand Cup, and has deserved to be given his first start for the All Blacks. It's important that he doesn't get over-awed by the occasion, and that he sticks to what he does best - running through the opposition with ease.

Here's the full side:

Tony Woodcock, Andrew Hore, Neemia Tialata, Ali Williams, Brad Thorn, Jerome Kaino, Richie McCaw (c), Rodney So'oialo, Jimmy Cowan, Stephen Donald, Dan Carter, Conrad Smith, Hosea Gear, Sitivini Sivivatu, Mils Muliaina.

Reserves: Greg Somerville, Kevin Mealamu, Anthony Boric, Adam Thomson, Piri Weepu, Ma'a Nonu, Isaia Toeava.

It sounds terribly cliche, but we're going to say it anyway - the All Black's performance on Saturday night was a game of two halves.

The first half was dominated by the Wallabies, who were definitely playing the better rugby - but they also had the majority of the ball, which helps.

The Wallabies scored either side of half time, and for a while there it looked like the All Blacks were struggling.

But three trys in quick succession put the All Blacks back in front by eleven points, with only a few minutes to play.

The Wallabies weren't finished, though, and when Ryan Cross scored the gap closed to four points, and a Wallaby comeback was back on the cards.

All the All Blacks had to do in the final minutes was hold onto the ball, but somehow the Wallabies managed to steal the ball - and away they went. The All Black defence had to scramble, and with time up on the clock the game was there for either side.

The Wallabies were hot on attack, but miraculously the All Blacks got the turn over, and Weepu booted the ball out, giving the All Blacks a 28-24 win. And, more importantly, the Tri Nations and Bledisloe Cups are now safely locked away for another year.

The difference between the two sides was the substitutions. Henry brought Donald, Mealamu and Afoa on early in the second half, and it seemed to energise the team - especially Weepu, who was in great form.

Robbie Deans didn't use his bench until into the dying stages, and it was too late - most of the Wallabies looked dead on their feet, and this gave the All Blacks, traditionally known for their fitness, a chance to take back the lead.

The combination between Donald and Carter looked good, too, with Carter moving to second five, which gave him more space to attack the tired Wallaby line.

The All Blacks now get a break for a few weeks, before the players will be allowed to play in the Air New Zealand Cup.

It's been a very tough Tri Nation campaign, and the boys thoroughly deserve a few weeks rest.

Well done lads - we're all proud of you.

Next weekend the All Blacks will face off against the Wallabies in Brisbane, in the final game of the 2008 Tri Nations campaign.

The game couldn't have more riding it - with the All Blacks sitting only one point ahead on the competition ladder, the winner will be crowned Tri Nations champions.

The Wallabies also need to win to keep their Bledisloe Cup dreams alive - the All Blacks only need to win one of the remaining two Bledisloe games to hold onto the Cup for another year.

It is easily the biggest game of the year for both these two sides.

Australia will also be wanting to put their humiliating 53-8 loss to the Springboks behind them, and a win over the All Blacks would certainly do just that.

But the All Blacks have been very impressive in their last two outings, and have yet another successful Tri Nations campaign in their sights.

Of the three sides, the All Blacks have been the best - and although they have lost two games, they have certainly set the benchmark once again. The way they bounced back from their loss to the Wallabies was near perfect, and then to keep South Africa scoreless - in South Africa - further shows the class of the All Blacks.

And, with 20 minutes to go in the game against Samoa, the All Blacks have already put on 80 points - the most ever scored against Samoa. We'll say it again -

Class.

The Wallabies have had their moments, with their win over the All Blacks the highlight of their campaign. Their two wins against the Springboks were good, without being anything special, and to be fair the way the Boks played in those games - well, anyone could have beaten them.

The problem for the Wallabies has been their consistency. Their wins have been followed up by some heavy defeats, and for a team that has guys like Stirling Mortlock, Matt Giteau and George Smith, they shouldn't be beaten by such large margins.

However, they can still win the Tri Nations with a win in Brisbane, so they must be doing something right.

South Africa have been very disappointing, to say the least. They started off well, going down in a close game to the All Blacks, before beating them at Carisbrook. But other than their last game (the 53-8 win over the Wallabies), they've been terrible.

Their loss in Perth was poor. It seemed like they didn't even want to play - or they were already thinking about going home. Whatever the reason was, their effort was not good enough for 'World Champions'.

And it only got worse - two losses on home soil is almost unacceptable.

Fortunately for them, they bounced back to demolish the Wallabies. But it was too little, too late.

It's amazing to think that not so long ago they were lifting the Webb Ellis trophy...

It's been an interesting Tri Nations, that's for sure. And, it's only fitting that the two best teams in the competition will battle it out for the title next weekend.

The performance by the All Blacks on Saturday night was by far and away one of their best efforts in recent years, and will have gone a long way to silencing some of their critics.

They completely dominated the game, and played the Wallabies right out of it.

Everything they did wrong in Sydney, they got right in Auckland - and then some.

The most impressive thing about their display was the accuracy of their kicking game. Dan Carter, Jimmy Cowan and Mils Muliaina were all on target with their kicks, and rather than kicking to the midfield, they drilled the ball down to the Wallabies 22 - which really put the Wallabies off their game.

We were doing to them what they traditionally do to us, and it was about time.

Tony Woodcock scored the game's first try, and to the surprise of many was on hand again to score his second of the night. His second came off a well worked lineout move, which (from the look on Graham Henry's face) you could tell was something they had been practicing.

The Wallabies bounced back to score before halftime, with Adam Ashley-Cooper scoring off the back off a strong Mortlock run. It was a rare mistake by the All Blacks, but fortunately it was the only one they'd make.

At halftime, the score was 21-10 to the All Blacks.

The All Blacks came out fired up in the second half, and from that point on the Wallabies weren't in the game.

Ma'a Nonu scored early on, which was really the last nail in the Wallabies coffin.

He score again in the final seconds of the match, giving the All Blacks a convincing 39-10 victory over the near-invisible Wallabies. It was the perfect performance to make up for their efforts the week before.

It was great to see them attacking, and winning, the lineouts, and impressively they won eight of the Wallabies throws. Didn't we say they needed to put some faith in their lineout capabilities?

I think we did, you know...

Jimmy Cowan showed why we think he is the number one halfback in the country - his kicking game was perfect, as was his passing, which was quick and accurate. He even pulled out the old dive pass.

With that one performance, he should have leapfrogged Andy Ellis as the number 9 starter.

The All Black forwards relished having Richie back. Our work around the ruck was impressive, we got numbers to the breakdown, and we drove the Wallaby forwards off the ball. Richie always leads from the front, and it obviously motivates the others to get stuck in.

What can we say about the Wallabies? Nothing really, because they weren't even given an opportunity to get into the game. The All Blacks kept the pressure on, and the Wallabies got thrown off their game plan.

When the Wallabies beat us last week, it was because we were terrible - not because they were brilliant.

We've shown that when we play well, they can't keep up with us - and Saturday was an excellent example of that.

The next stop for both sides is the difficult task of South Africa. The Springboks are a real chance of taking out the Tri Nations, with three home games still to play.

The All Blacks need to win in Cape Town if they want to hold onto the Tri Nations for another year. It won't be easy, but if they play like they did on Saturday they stand every chance of winning.

The Wallabies play two games in South Africa, and despite beating the Boks earlier on, they face a very difficult task ahead of them.

The Tri Nations, sports fans, is heating up.

After last weeks disappointing loss to the Wallabies, the All Blacks finally have some good news to report - and it's the news we've all been waiting for.

Richie's back in the starting lineup for this Saturday's Test in Auckland, and his return couldn't come soon enough.

Daniel Braid by no means let the side down, but when it comes down to him and Richie - there is an obvious difference in their skill factor.

The All Blacks coaching team has named eighteen players in the starting lineup, with Cowan, Ellis and Weepu all bracketed at halfback, while Hore and Mealamu are both bracketed at hooker.

Cowan is likely to start in the number nine jersey, and is expected to be fully fit by Saturday night. We certainly hope he plays, because we've been calling for him to start for some time now.

Weepu is in the squad, and will start if both Cowan and Ellis can't play due to injury - but at this point, it's most likely that Weepu will play off the bench. It's a good opportunity for Weepu to prove he deserves to be in the team...

Richie's return means Braid moves to the bench, although at this point he is bracketed with Adam Thomson, which means Sione Luaki drops out of the twenty-two (surprise surprise...).

So'oialo will move back to number eight in a direct swap with Kaino, who moves to the blindside this week.

Having Richie back certainly gives our side a lot more stability - especially around the ruck, which we'll need against George Smith and Phil Waugh, both of whom are starting.

In the backs, Conrad comes back into center, with Kahui dropped to the bench.

With Leon MacDonald now ruled out with ongoing concussion problems, Muliaina drops back into the fullback role, after a sniff at a shot on the wing. We'll find out who slots in where tomorrow.

Smith will have the task of containing Stirling Mortlock, who returns from injury - but we have a lot of faith in Smiths defence, and he should do the job.

This side has a solid look about it - but after last week it's going to take a much improved performance to beat the Wallabies, who look like they have settled into the ELVs more comfortably. It certainly helps that Deans had a full Super 14 campaign to get used to coaching with the new laws - not that we think that excuses the All Black's performance...

Yesterday, Wayne Smith admitted that the All Blacks coaches were out-coached by Deans in Sydney, and that they are still learning their way around the new laws. But at the end of the day, every player in the All Black team played in the Super 14, and should be used to the ELVs by now.

If they can sort out their handling issues, and get more forwards to the breakdown (rather than standing in the backline as they were in Sydney), we expect to see a much tighter performance.

The weather in Auckland at the moment is atrocious, and all signs are pointing towards a wet game on Saturday - which will no doubt mean a tough forward battle. Thank goodness Richie's back, is all we can say.

All Blacks: Mils Muliaina, Conrad Smith, Ma'a Nonu, Sitivini Sivivatu, Dan Carter, Cowan/Ellis/Weepu, Rodney So'oialo, Richie McCaw (c), Jerome Kaino, Ali Williams, Brad Thorn, Greg Somerville, Hore/Mealamu, Tony Woodcock.

Reserves: John Afoa, Hore/Mealamu, Anthony Boric, Braid/Thomson, Cowan/Ellis/Weepu, Stephen Donald, Richard Kahui.

Australia: Adam Ashley-Cooper, Peter Hynes, Stirling Mortlock (c), Berrick Barnes, Lote Tuqiri, Matt Giteau, Luke Burgess, Wycliff Palu, George Smith, Phil Waugh, James Horwill, Nathan Sharpe, Al Baxter, Stephen Moore, Benn Robinson.

Reserves: Tatafu Polota-Nau, Matt Dunning, Dan Vickerman, Hugh McMeniman, Sam Cordingly, Ryan Cross, Drew Mitchell.

What the hell happened on Saturday night?

It's hard to believe that we were watching the All Blacks - we haven't seen them play that poorly in a long time.

Our effort in the second half was below average, and the Wallabies took full advantage of our poor ball handling, and made us pay.

It's hard to think that we went toe-to-toe with South Africa in two fantastic Test matches, only to pull out one of our worst efforts ever.

Now, don't get us wrong - we can handle losing if we put in a solid effort, like in Dunedin. But to lose in the fashion that we did on Saturday...

It's tough to take.

There was no cohesion amongst the players, which made it very hard to get any forward momentum going. And any time we did get going, our handling let us down.

It's hard not to think that, once again, the ref has cost us big time. How the hell the ref, and the two assistant refs, missed that penalty try...we'll never know. And let's be honest - that was the point in the game when the momentum swung.

Sivivatu would have scored, and Peter Hynes should have been sent to the bin. We're not saying we would have won from that point, but it would have given us a 26-17 lead, and put the pressure squarely on the Wallabies.

But we didn't score, and things went down hill from there - and there's no excuse for our performance in the last thirty minutes.

So, where to from here for the All Blacks?

We don't think it's a case of making a heap of changes - the players that were out there have the skills to beat any side in the world. We think it's just a case of going back and working on the basics at training - learning how to hold onto the ball would be a good start...

The one thing they do need to start doing is kicking deep, rather than the midfield kicks they seem to do all the time. All that does is give the opposition the ball in prime field position. They also need to start putting faith in their lineout abilities, and kick the ball out a bit more - especially down in the opposition's territory. Other teams do it to us, and it puts us under a lot of pressure.

Unfortunately, we think it's time for Sione Luaki to be dropped. He lost us possession on numerous occasions, and while he wasn't the only one, there was only one time when he didn't cough it up (out of about 8-9 carries) - not good enough. On his day he can be a brutal runner, but those games are far too rear - and at Test match level you need to be on song every time.

Now that Chris Masoe is heading offshore, Liam Messam would seem to be the best candidate. At least, we think so...

Injuries to Ellis (ribs) and Cowan (knee and broken nose), has meant Piri Weepu has been rushed into the All Blacks camp, and will be in contention if either one pulls out. The way Ellis was hobbling on the field, it's hard to see him playing on Saturday, but we do give him credit for going back out there with his rib injury - it shows the guy's got heart.

Auckland's Taniela Moa will also train with the squad this week.

Hore suffered a hip injury, and while it's not considered serious at this point, Hikawera Elliot has been brought in as cover.

New Zealand's depth is really being tested now...

Full credit to the Wallabies on their performance on Saturday (how cliche is that?) - they outplayed the All Blacks and thoroughly deserve their win. Boy, that's tough to say. But they really did - they took full advantage of our errors, and punished us.

Suddenly, we feel a little nervous about playing them again...

Hurry back, Richie.