Scotland 0 New Zealand 40:We came to Murrayfield expecting to witness rugby from another dimension. Instead, we saw a game that merely served to highlight this tournament's structural failings.
That New Zealand, in unfamiliar grey, malfunctioned in their attempts to rout a second-string home team provides the IRB with some wriggle room in terms of the problems highlighted by the Scotland coach's selection policy against the most prolific team the professional game has seen.
If not for an unprecedented 20 All Black handling errors, their six-try return would have at least doubled.
Frank Hadden's blatant snub of what should have been one of the marquee fixtures of the group stages was logical: Scotland play three games in 11 days; the last one, against Italy in St Etienne on Saturday, is the match that defines their success or failure in this competition.
Hadden accepted long ago his team would not win Pool C but he is making damn sure they make the quarter-finals as runners-up.
"It's not our decision to have the format of the World Cup the way it is," he said. "First time I looked at the draw I couldn't believe it but having accepted there was nothing I could do about it we just had to crack on with it. We do what we need to do to go as far as we can in this competition. I am not unhappy where we are at this moment."
There was no zero-risk policy in force. When Chris Paterson sustained blurred vision after 20 minutes, he was immediately whisked off for Dan Parks. Paterson looked shaky at outhalf anyway.
"Personally, I didn't feel the (team) selection to be a gamble. I thought it has been an excellent opportunity for guys who haven't played a lot this season to put their hands up for selection in the later stages of the competition," said Hadden, who added he was happy with being able to hold a training session of front-liners this morning.
Graham Henry made noises afterwards about this being the physical confrontation New Zealand sought after powder-puff defeats of Italy and Portugal. The evidence simply is not there to support such an assertion and after three outings the tournament favourites have yet to break sweat while among their main rivals South Africa have been to war with Samoa, England and, most notably, Tonga last Saturday. France, too, have been to hell and back.
The collective pulse of the 64,558 attendance did rise at times but nowhere near the heart-attack levels New Zealand are capable of provoking in their ultra-critical fans.
The treatment of Luke McAlister is a good example of the Kiwi rugby followers' attitude to mediocrity. The young centre - still only 24 - lightens the enormous playmaker burden heaped upon Dan Carter. He also tackles like a rhinoceros. Just ask the Scottish tighthead Craig Smith, who was humiliated by a monstrous leg-pumping hit on 24 minutes that eventually resulted in three points from a Carter penalty.
And yet, the moans from the visiting support resounded around the stands when McAlister neglected to release Doug Howlett for a certain try early in the second half. Still, his form ensures one of the great inside centres in the modern game, Aaron Mauger, remains a fringe player.
The quarter-final permutations and combinations will tell us more.
From a players perspective at least, this appeared to be the start of phase two for the All Blacks. Taken out of their Gallic comfort zone, they unleashed Kapo O Ponga - a haka unique to this group - for the first time at the World Cup.
The earth seemed to quake as Carl Hayman roared: "Kapa o pango kia whakawhenua au i ahau (Let me become one with the land)!" Multiple cameras flashed. We feared for the health of Scottish rugby. But the avalanche never came.
They started with murderous intent as captain Richie McCaw was sent scampering over by a delightful reverse pass from Rodney So'oialo off the most solid of scrums. The scrum was impregnable throughout, hardly a surprise considering Hayman was welcoming Alasdair Dickinson to the Test arena.
A notable milestone was attained when the Munster-bound Howlett surpassed Christian Cullen as the All Blacks' leading try-scorer, his two touchdowns bringing him to 48 in 61 Tests.
The historic moment came on 14 minutes when Carter, McAlister and Leon MacDonald flashed the ball wide for the sprinter to dive over near the corner.
MacDonald sustained a haematoma of the thigh muscle in the move. Regardless of the prognosis, Mils Muliaina is expected back for the quarter-final.
MacDonald's departure did at least allow Nick Evans show his array of skills as a fullback.
The outside-centre berth also remains a problem, though Tana Umaga's reluctant heir apparent Conrad Smith is approaching peak fitness. If he can regain the confidence that brought him this far, that concern should be eradicated.
The Kiwis may have been unconvincing but the result was wrapped up before half-time when Byron Kelleher's tidy dummy opened a gap the scrumhalf exploited to make it 20-0.
Into the second half and Carter added a second penalty but it was a place-kicking day to forget for the young master, who finished with a four from eight return.
Carter will surely avoid a similar experience in this tournament, while Chris Jack and Jerry Collins are certain starters come the knockout stages. Twenty minutes passed before the next New Zealand score. It came from Ali Williams's sheer power as he battered over poor Rory Lawson.
Moments later Carter seized on a Scottish handling error before switching on the afterburners.
The sixth try was typically the best as the injection of impetus from the bench - Jack, Isaia Toeava and particularly Andrew Hore - and two promptings from McAlister saw Howlett racing clear.
It completed a neat 40-zip result that was of no benefit to either nation's aspirations or, from a marketing standpoint, to the Rugby World Cup. C'est la vie.
Scoring sequence: 4 mins: R McCaw try, D Carter con, 7-0; 14: D Howlett try, 12-0; 24: Carter pen, 15-0; 32: B Kelleher try, 20-0 (half-time 20-0); 42: Carter pen, 23-0; 61: A Williams try, 28-0; 64: Carter try, con, 35-0; 74: Howlett try, 40-0.
NEW ZEALAND: L MacDonald; D Howlett, C Smith, L McAlister, S Sivivatu; D Carter, B Kelleher; T Woodcock, A Oliver, C Hayman; R Thorne, A Williams; C Masoe, R McCaw, R So'oialo. Replacements: N Evans for MacDonald (inj, 19 mins), B Leonard for Kelleher, A Hore for Oliver (both 59 mins), S Lauaki for McCaw (61 mins), N Tialata for Hayman, I Toeava for Smith (both 65 mins), C Jack for Williams (66 mins).
SCOTLAND: H Southwell; N Walker, M Di Rollo, A Henderson, S Webster; C Paterson, C Cusiter; A Dickinson, S Lawson, C Smith; S MacLeod, S Murray (capt); K Brown, J Barclay, D Callam. Replacements: D Parks for C Paterson (inj, 19 mins), G Kerr for C Smith (51 mins), F Thomson for S Lawson (58 mins), R Lawson for C Cusiter (59 mins), C Smith for A Dickinson (66 mins), R Dewey for A Henderson, J Hamilton for S MacLeod (both 69 mins).
Referee: M Jonker (RSA).
