Richie McCaw: 'New Zealand started slowly'

New Zealand captain Richie McCaw has admitted that his team started sluggishly during their 20-15 win over England in Auckland.

The All Blacks were pushed hard by the tourists on Saturday before Conrad Smith's late try saw them take a 1-0 lead in the three-Test series.

"We were caught a half-yard off the pace," McCaw is quoted as saying by Sky Sports News. "It took 40 minutes to build into it and the second half was better even though the scoreline was pretty close.

"They were just a little bit quicker off their feet, but I thought after half time we got back into the game and put a bit of pressure on."

New Zealand and England play the second Test of the series next Saturday in Dunedin.