The only problem was the Springboks lost their leading soldier for more than half the battle.
And the loss of hooker Bismarck du Plessis was in the end a big factor in why the All Blacks won the game.
All Black lock Brodie Retallick said the game was exactly what the All Blacks expected.
''It was very physical, very hard, and we knew they were going to throw everything at us,'' he said.
''But we just had to absorb it and then take our chances when they came along.''
That they did, with the All Blacks in the end winning comfortably after leading 17-10 at the break.
The game turned on the dismissal of du Plessis, who was leading the Springbok charge.
No team in international rugby can mount a serious challenge with just 14 men, and especially so against the best team in the world.
The All Blacks showed their increasing depth when replacement first five-eighth Beauden Barrett came on for an injured Dan Carter and looked calm and assured in the pivot position.
He said the 60-plus minutes he got on the field was a pleasant surprise.
''It was something I was not expecting. I thought I would get a bit of a run at the end. But when I got out there, I just had to play what was in front of me,'' Barrett said.
''I hadn't had a lot of time at practice during the week playing there, so I just played they way I had to. I missed that first kick for touch, probably going for too much distance.
''But the boys around me really helped and we managed to get a bit of ball.''
The All Blacks nabbed plenty of turnovers in the game, and the Springboks never got close.
Kieran Read scored the opening try of the game for the All Blacks after just five minutes.
The All Blacks won a lineout 5m out and Owen Franks, who at 25 was playing in his 50th test, was lowered just short of the line.
Read, however, drove over from the melee and had the All Blacks on the board.
About 10 minutes later, du Plessis was given 10 minutes on the sideline for a tough but clean tackle of Carter.
Carter left the field with his bung shoulder and Barrett made an impact with a nice run, eventually leading to Retallick's first test try.
He got on the end of a Conrad Smith pass, and scampered 20m to dot under the bar. Retallick later admitted it was probably the longest he had ever run.
Du Plessis came back on and showed his worth to the Springboks by getting a try from a driving maul just after the half-hour mark.
But when he left the field for good just after halftime, because of an elbow to the neck of All Black loose forward Liam Messam, the game was effectively over as a contest.
Read went over for his second try under the bar a few minutes later and the All Blacks had the ascendancy for the rest of the game.
Read had his usual strong game for the home side while Sam Cane assured spectators he could ably step into Richie McCaw's shoes.
Out the back Ben Smith looked lively in everything he did, while Aaron Smith was tidy at halfback.
Best for the visitors was lock Eben Etzebeth, while No 8 Duane Vermeulen never backed down.
There is nothing like a good piece of irony.
For all the talk of playing pretty, it was the Wallabies' ability to win ugly against Argentina on Saturday night that could end up being the making of the side.
In driving rain and a fluky breeze, Australia hung on grimly in the second half, after leading 14-3 at halftime, to notch a 14-13 win in front of 18,214 sodden fans in Perth.
The result snapped a four-match losing run and gave Ewen McKenzie his first win as national coach.
But more importantly, the victory gave the Wallabies a much-needed confidence boost heading into their September 28 showdown with the Springboks in South Africa and a rematch with Argentina in Rosario.
Fullback Israel Folau scored Australia's only try when he fended off four opponents to cross over.
All Blacks v Springboks
The scores
All Blacks 29
Kieran Read 2, Brodie Retallick, Sam Cane tries; Beauden Barrett 2 con, pen; Dan Carter con
Springboks 15
Bismarck du Plessis, Pat Lambie tries; Morne Steyn con, pen
Halftime: All Blacks 17-10.
Crowd: 47,362.
