Lynn McConnell in Wellington
Ireland's captain Brian O'Driscoll was left to lament another meltdown in the last quarter of a Test match against the All Blacks after the 11-21 loss in Wellington on Saturday.
O'Driscoll who has tasted defeat on two previous Irish tours and with the British and Irish Lions in New Zealand, talked before the game of the need to be competitive in the last quarter.
But a piece of Daniel Carter magic opened up the tenacious Irish defence and effectively marked the difference between the two sides, he said after the game.
"We were level pegging but one line break is the difference on a night like this. They got the momentum and a 10-point lead is pretty unassailable.
"It is hugely so disappointing to come so close after 65 minutes to not be able to put it away," he said.
O'Driscoll said possession of the ball on such a miserable night was something of a liability and they had been horrible conditions in which to play a Test match.
"It is disappointing to push as hard as we did and then slip up with that line break and be punished badly for it," he said.
Acting coach Michael Bradley said he was very proud of the team's effort.
He rued two possible scoring chances that were missed in the first half, points that if taken could have been difficult for the All Blacks to pull back.
"One moment of genius created the line break," he said of All Black Dan Carter's 65th minute burst that set up the match-winning try for his outside second five-eighths Ma'a Nonu.
"The effort was fantastic but the New Zealand pack really put it up to us," he said.
However, he did admit that the game would have been difficult to watch for anyone other than the purist.
The side had released the pressure in the game too easily and had been punished.
"The tactics were fine, the critical issue was the line break.
"The desire of the players to win this match was evident in training all week. They believed they had a really good chance to beat New Zealand," he said.