On Saturday night, the two sides met for the first time since that encounter, and in front of an 80,000 strong crowd at ANZ Stadium in Sydney the All Blacks proved with a 27-19 victory that semi-final was not a stroke of good luck.
In all honesty, it wasn't exactly the spectacle everyone had hoped for. Both sides struggled to get back into the rhythm and intensity of Bledisloe Cup rugby. The handling error and penalty tallies rose rapidly, and the game was to be decided on who could take advantage of the mistakes made by their opposition.
Although the Wallabies took an early 3-0 lead, it was the All Blacks who turned opportunities into points through the boot of Dan Carter, as the Wallaby forwards continued to infringe at the breakdown.
The score line continued to increase as Israel Dagg easily stepped past his opposite Kurtley Beale on his way to the try line.
It wasn't long before the Wallaby fullback cost his team another try after he took his eye off a pass from Will Genia. This resulted in a scrum which was moved through the All Black backline to put Cory Jane over in the corner.
The Wallabies did respond with a try to Nathan Sharpe immediately before half time, decreasing the deficit to 18-10 as the two sides headed into the changing sheds.
Although the quality of rugby barely improved in the second half as the penalty tally continued to rise (thanks in part to the whistle of referee Alain Rolland), both teams traded penalties through the boots of Dan Carter and Berrick Barnes.
Despite this, it became very clear the All Blacks remained the dominant side in this match. They continued to take advantage of some poor decision-making by their rivals.
However, this advantage remained largely a territorial advantage. The All Blacks made errors of their own as they failed to finish off backline moves. Some passes were unable to connect and tries went begging.
The Wallabies gave a late surge and came within 5 points late in the match, but the indiscipline of their captain, David Pocock, gave Dan Carter the opportunity to extend the All Blacks lead to 8 in the final minute. That penalty stripped the Australians of a vital bonus point in the inaugural Rugby Championship.
Not a pretty victory, but the All Blacks will take it in stride and learn from their mistakes next week.
In summary, let's look at what was hot, and what was not from the first Bledisloe match of 2012.
Hot: Luke Romano: The Crusaders lock's first big test match against Australia and may have been unlucky not to gain ‘player of the match' status. The big man did everything right in both defence and attack.
Israel Dagg: He showed shades of Christian Cullen. He may not have had a fantastic season in red and black, but when he pulls on a black jersey the talent truly rises.
Not: The Wallabies key men, Will Genia, Kurtley Beale and their captain David Pocock all had nights they will want to forget, and they will have to fight to keep their jerseys next week in Auckland.
