This was an England win - a great escape, some might say - carved out of anxiety. Nobody in the team needed telling (although there was no shortage of advice all week) that they were on a hiding to nothing against an All Blacks side deemed virtual trialists because of their absent personnel.
And nobody present in the capacity crowd needed conning by the annoying man on the public address system, either, that this was 'a tremendous victory'. It wasn't. It was a blessed relief, England's first win over New Zealand since 1993.
Yet England's nerve held - just. And they should be proud of that alone. The better rugby, going forward at least, came from the visitors, but they couldn't quite bang down the ramparts at the end.
It was a mixed England performance - more convincing in the period just after half-time than in any other passage of play - but Clive Woodward will come away from the experience satisfied that his team can hold up under quality pressure.
Nothing summed up the resolve better than Ben Cohen's tackle on the full-back Ben Blair a few feet from the line in the closing minutes. It was a last-ditch effort to match the finish of England's win over France in Paris two-and-a-half years ago, rounded off with a backs-against-the wall tackling performance on their own line.
There is no disgrace in conceding short-range tries to the likes of Jonah Lomu, although there will be serious talk before the next match about giving up easy ball in the rucks and line-outs, as well as allowing the opposition backs so much room to move late in the game. It was when stretched by New Zealand's cheetah-quick breaks and precision passing close to the ruck that England had to be on their best form - and that was not always the case.
Towards the end, when the Blacks strung together a succession of scintillating raids wide and down the middle, the possibility of an England collapse momentarily surfaced. And it was here that Martin Johnson shone.
Talk recently that the captain's place in the side was in jeopardy seemed to hit the same level of sanity as speculation that Sven-Göran Eriksson is heading for Italy. It would take a significant dip in form for Woodward to dispense with one of international rugby's most commanding leaders. When the replacement Danny Lee crossed to narrow England's lead to three points nine minutes from the scheduled end, Johnson gave his players the full glare behind the line. This was not a game to give up so carelessly. And this was not a captain to let down.
As for New Zealand, they look to be a dangerous side. It is hard to imagine any other rugby nation having the audacity to leave at home nearly their entire pack and bring with them 12 unblooded recruits, and still talk realistically of beating the best the northern hemisphere has to offer.
And England, with all due respect to the French, are surely the premier team north of the equator. Whether they can boast such dominance in the World Cup next year is harder to gauge but, on this showing, they showed they have the capacity to regroup when the opposition start to run free. A lesser team would have crumbled.
There were several moments of blinding quality, a few lapses in concentration, but, overall, a sense of commitment and self-belief from England. Even when trailing in the first half, there was a feeling of nervousness rather than blind panic.
Any notion that New Zealand had sent an inferior side here on their short tour was dispelled in the first half not only by their two tries, but also by their rock-like tackling and deft work with the ball in hand. They troubled an England team not used to such sustained peppering. Only the French, and occasionally Australia, have tested England's three-quarter line recently with such quicksilver movement.
This All Blacks team look to have eschewed the southern hemisphere vogue of rugby-league-like recycling up the middle, the endless churn that punches holes phase after phase before their halfs spin the ball wide.
At every opportunity, they sent the ball across the line. Lomu was an ever-presend danger, as was the wild-haired Tana Umaga. This not only stretched England's defence, it deprived their pack of the opportunity to wear down their supposedly green opponents.
On those occasions when England managed to engage the All Blacks pack, there was little in it. What the game cried out for in these circumstances was some magic, a burst of imagination. It was encouraging that such an opportunity was spotted, at least, by the newest member of the team - even if his teammates didn't see it.
As Jonny Wilkinson was lining up his first penalty attempt, the young Gloucester winger James Simpson-Daniel all but yelled his tonsils off as he spotted inviting acreage left unguarded on his flank. The moment passed and Wilkinson duly potted his goal, but the winger's willingness to shout his corner demonstrated the sort of inter-dependence that Clive Woodward has engendered in this England team.
At the core of the team is the captain, quiet yet menacing in his physicality. If Johnson is under any threat it surely cannot be because of any deficiency in his leadership. He is the archetypal tower of strength, a man who commands respect through deed rather than words.
