It would not be surprising if Brian O'Driscoll's shivering post-test interview followed his farewell test performance on New Zealand soil.

And if that is the case, New Zealand fans have probably seen the end of perhaps the most over-rated international player in recently memory.

O'Driscoll always managed to talk a good game.

But when it came to putting those words into action, all too often while in New Zealand he was shown up as someone who couldn't back his verbals with actions.

In saying that, he could have made an impression during the 2005 British Lions tour had he not been taken out by Tana Umaga and Keven Mealamu in the opening moments of the first test in Christchurch.

O'Driscoll again talked up his side in the days leading up to last Saturday night's season-opening All Black test in Wellington.

But again when it came time for him to front on the field, the Irish captain was missing in action.

Granted the match conditions were horrific for members of both backlines.

But when Ireland were screaming out for someone with his experience to front up and lead by example, O'Driscoll was AWOL.

In contrast the All Black midfield of Ma'a Nonu and Conrad Smith were superb in the wet and chilly conditions.

And given the little work that O'Driscoll did at Westpac Stadium, it's not surprising he was left as a shivering wreck after the test.

Nonu and Smith were among some outstanding contributors among the All Blacks on the weekend.

All members of the pack also stood up and dominated up-front.

Among that group is Neemia Tialata, forced to play all 80 minutes after John Afoa was forced out of the match with a knee injury.

Considering the conditions, it was an impressive first-up effort from the All Blacks.

Notoriously slow starters in the test arena, it was a performance which showed some very positive signs.

And while the weather and ground conditions meant it was never going to be a grand spectacle for running rugby, what really was impressive to me was the mental strength and collective determination of the All Blacks.

All of that made a front page headline in a Sunday newspaper stating "Henry's woes" all that much more bizarre to comprehend.

It smacked of having been written by a sub who wasn't at the game and probably hadn't looked up that often from his or her computer screen in the warmth of their office to watch what was obviously going on at Westpac Stadium.

What did you think of the All Blacks' opening test of the season?

And like me, do you think that Brian O'Driscoll has never lived up to his five-star rating dished out on him by the UK press when in New Zealand?

Meanwhile, it was interesting to note what sponsors were and weren't mentioned by the All Blacks in the lead-up to the weekend's test in Wellington.

The terms Iveco and Rebel Sport, both NZRU sponsors, were constantly mentioned in interviews and in quotes on press releases from the NZRU.

But one of the notable omissions was the proper title of the competition Irish club side Munster won recently, the Heineken Cup.

Instead it was incorrectly and repeatedly referred to as the European Cup in interviews featuring All Black top-brass and official team press releases.

Heineken is a DB product.

The fact that the NZRU are sponsored by Lion Breweries could well have had something to do the creation of the new title for the championship which denotes European club supremacy.