Scotland vs. New Zealand: Winners and Losers from Murrayfield
New Zealand came out on top of a tetchy encounter in Edinburgh to beat Scotland 24-16 at Murrayfield on Saturday, with forwards Victor Vito and Jeremy Thrush clinching the tries for the All Blacks.
Steve Hansen implemented a stack of changes to his line-up for the trip north of the border, but the southern hemisphere tourists still had enough to edge out their European hosts.
Scotland will take heart in knowing they held the All Blacks to within just a point heading into the game's final phases, and both teams have plenty of learning points to take note of moving further into the autumn series.
Read on for a breakdown of the biggest winners and losers emerging from the clash in Scotland's capital.
Winner: Scotland Show Valour Against Experimental All Blacks
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The fixture may have ended with New Zealand on the better side of an eight-point margin, but Scotland did tremendously to keep their guests within a point until Jeremy Thrush's try in the 73rd minute.
Until then, the home side were robust in their refusal to offer the All Blacks any respect, and it's only the gulf in depth that these two sides possess which eventually saw New Zealand through, as it so often does.
Scotland have a fine rugby history but in recent years have appeared content with their status as whipping boys of the Six Nations—although players and fans would certainly argue otherwise.
On Saturday, though, we saw more from a side that showed a significant boost in determination despite seeing a notable minority in possession, carrying over the positivity achieved from last Saturday's win over Argentina.
Loser: Dan Carter Showing Growing Pains Back in Black
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Dan Carter returned to the All Blacks' starting line-up for the first time in a year this weekend, putting smiles on the faces of many in the world of rugby, both in New Zealand and elsewhere.
However, now 32, questions are being asked of Carter and whether or not he's the man to wear Hansen's No. 10 jersey, with Aaron Cruden in particular applying heavy pressure to start himself.
A 55-minute display from the Crusaders fly-half was enough to show his powers as a back-line conduit, giving Malakai Fekitoa and Ryan Crotty plenty to feed off in midfield.
However, certain areas were lacking. Carter missed attempts from the tee and wasn't as direct in rushing the ball himself as we've seen in the past, undoubtedly a natural defect of his ageing.
There aren't any immediate causes for alarm just yet, but those who see Cruden as the man to steer New Zealand moving forward may take further evidence from this outing to justify their claims.
Winner: Scottish Giants Stand Tall at the Line-out
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The set piece isn't an area in which Scotland consistently excel across all platforms against their elite peers, but the frequency with which they stood up to the All Blacks line-out on Saturday was admirable.
In the first half, Adam Ashe and Rob Harley were successful in stealing possession away from the visitors on their own throw, and Ross Ford was reliable when it came to the Scots' own put-ins.
Richie Gray is a towering figure capable of disrupting enemy lines on occasion—as is younger brother Jonny—and with Grant Gilchrist still to return from injury, Scotland may hope to see this aspect of their stratagem grow into a marked advantage.
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Loser: Missed Tackles Still an Issue for Evolving Minnows
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Missed tackles is always something of a convoluted statistic for teams when coming up against the All Blacks, the archetype of how a team should look to run the ball when coming into direct contact.
However, especially given that this was a weakened New Zealand side, Scotland will look upon their physical shortcomings as an area of frustration.
It was evident in Victor Vito's opening try that there may still be an air of intimidation that affects outfits coming up against Hansen's men, but Vern Cotter won't see that as any excuse for his line-up.
It's a difficult task to treat at this level, given that one would like to think any international-standard player knows the ins and outs of how to tackle properly.
Given how much possession New Zealand boasted, they were always bound to be on the tackling end more often, but to go into half-time having missed 14 attempts compared to the All Blacks' five told a story in itself.
However, it's as much down to squad selection as it is the training itself, with Alasdair Dickinson and Alex Dunbar among those particularly accountable for missing several enemy strides on Saturday.
Winner: Improvising Scotland Showing New Determination Under Cotter
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In near-opposite approach to the candour that Scott Johnson took with his players, Cotter has been a stern quartermaster of Scotland's ranks in his first six months at the team's helm.
However, with that sternness has also come a belief in their ranks, with Cotter encouraging his players to be free in their expression, and it showed against New Zealand on Saturday.
Where once there would have been a temptation to kick possession back to their opponent, the Scots now continue to show a willingness to carry and run the ball from their own borders.
It's a confidence that many of the highest-grade sides show when with ball in hand, and Scotland has a talent pool of players now developing a knack for this mentality under the new regime.
Stuart Hogg was at times elusive when coming out of his own 22, and the likes of Dunbar and Tommy Seymour can also show spur-of-the-moment dazzling runs when called upon.
It's a highly promising trait for the Scotland team going forward, and if it can be promoted to the emerging divisions, a fresh and positive mindset could be taken up by future stars, too.
All statistics come courtesy of ESPN Scrum and Ruckin Good Stats.
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