The All Blacks have turned winning without the ball into an art form.
Using the rugby equivalent of Muhammad Ali's rope-a-dope tactics, statistics show New Zealand have kicked more and run less than their opponents this season on the way to recording 13 wins from as many Tests.
The world champions are regularly outpointed in possession and territory stakes, and have often been forced to make considerably more tackles than their rivals.
Tight wins over France and England this month have further highlighted the anomaly, prompting assistant coach Ian Foster to point to the most important numbers on a rugby field.
"Some stats are important and some aren't," Foster said.
"What's most important is how you use the possession that you get. We've generally used our possession pretty well."
The majority of the All Blacks' 48 tries this year have come through rapid strikes, either from long range or through quickly converting territory into points.
They have conceded 16 tries, often after opponents have hammered away for long periods.
"There are a lot of teams who play us a certain way, who just want to hold onto the ball for lengths of time. We've just got to stand our ground and make sure that we're strong," Foster said.
He isn't always comfortable with the discrepancy in possession.
England's overwhelming advantage in that department during New Zealand's 30-22 win at Twickenham last weekend wasn't in the script.
The hosts enjoyed 62 per cent of possession and made just 87 tackles compared to the tourists' 152.
Foster admits the All Blacks have deliberately kicked more this year, as part of a tweaked tactical approach.
He says they weren't necessarily swayed by the trend in Super Rugby this year, which saw the teams who kicked and defended most - the Chiefs and Brumbies - meet in the final.
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