All Blacks too good in Tri-Nations opener

(CNN) -- New Zealand extended their unbeaten home run to 30 matches with a 19-8 victory over world champions South Africa in the opening Tri-Nations rugby Test match in Wellington.

The new-look All Blacks, without injured captain Richie McCaw and in freezing wet and windy conditions, triumphed thanks to the boot of Dan Carter and a try from Jerome Kaino.

Bryan Habana's touchdown for the Springboks gave the visitors hope but they were second best in a hugely physical contest.

The physicality of the contest was evident from the outset with Boks fly-half Butch James making a late charge on opposite number Carter inside the opening minute.

Carter could not make the most of the penalty, missing a straightforward shot in front of goal, but he made no mistake in the fourth minute when he banged over a three-pointer.

Brad Thorn was lucky not to be sin-binned moments later when he picked Springboks hooker John Smit off his feet and dropped him to the ground after Adam Thomson had caught full-back Conrad Jantjes with a high tackle to spark pushing and shoving.

Smit suggested to referee Stuart Dickinson that it had been a spear tackle but no cards were shown and James levelled the score with the resulting penalty.

Carter extended the All Blacks' lead to 6-3 with another penalty in the 20th minute when Smit was penalized for offside.

James wasted an opportunity to close the gap when Andrew Hore was penalised for offside in the 25th minute but Carter made no mistake with his fourth attempt of the night when Boks number eight Joe van Niekerk, who had put team-mate Adrian Jacobs under huge pressure in his own 22 with an awful pass, then compounded the error by being caught offside.

Then, four minutes before half-time and against the run of play, lightning quick wing Habana dived over for the opening try of the match.

The All Blacks turned over possession at the breakdown in the Boks half and a well-weighted pass from Jacobs found fellow midfielder Jean de Villiers who burst through the gap before sending Habana in at the corner. James failed to add the conversion and the All Blacks held on for a slender 9-8 lead at the break.

The All Blacks were quick out of the blocks in the second half with Kaino scoring his first international try and Carter adding the conversion for a 16-8 lead.

Kaino should have had a second in the 57th minute when he chased a Carter crossfield kick but assistant referee James Leckie ruled he had been ahead of the fly-half.

Both teams rang the changes in the second period and Francois Steyn, who came on for James, fired a speculative long-range drop goal in a bid to close the gap but watched as it dropped just short. And in the end it was Carter who had the final say, slotting his final penalty of the night with nine minutes to play.

New Zealand captain Rodney So'oialo said: "It was a very important win for us. We were on the back foot throughout the first half but came good thanks to a 15-minute spell in the second.

"South Africa are the best, they're the world champions and have a great defense which we needed to crack. I'm just glad the boys came through."