The 24-year-old, in the home domain of Dan Carter whose mantle he is assuming, was sternly critical yesterday of his goal kicking - he missed three of his seven attempts - and tactical kicking in the 23-13 first test win at Eden Park on Saturday.
The All Blacks didn't put the French under enough pressure with their kicking game and when they did kick it was pretty poor, he said.
That's something he's been working to fix this week.
He knows his kicking could be even more important than it was last Saturday if it's a wet night.
"You never know what the winter going to throw at you in New Zealand, so if it does get a little bit greasy or wet, I think being able to apply pressure [through] our kicking game is pretty important for both sides," he said.
He had not felt pressure replacing Carter, he said. "I suppose the media and the public probably see it that way, but for me, I'm not Dan Carter, I'm not trying to be Dan Carter. I'm Aaron Cruden. I'm just trying to go out there and play to the best of my ability and do the jersey proud."
Cruden mentioned that when his third kick wobbled over in Auckland after he missed his first two, Carter, the tee-man, said "Mate, we'll take that all day."
The adidas test balls were different to the Gilbert balls used in Super rugby and it had taken him a bit longer than he'd have liked to get used to their flight.
"They're a little bit softer so you have to really strike them pure and true ... They do seem to travel a little bit further, they feel sweeter off the foot. Hopefully I'll send a few over the black dot if I get the chance on Saturday."
It was a matter of trusting his technique and getting back to what he was doing well last year, he said.
"I've still got a couple of days to do more practising, and just practising the whole game plan so that we're ready for what the French are going to throw at us," he said.
"They really came hungry in that first test - they were physical and aggressive at the breakdown and we just need to be better in a lot of areas."
The All Blacks' new plan relied on a lot of ball retention and they had probably let themselves down in that area after conceding 24 turnovers in Auckland.
A lot of players carried the ball into contact and the ball that came back was pretty slow or lost in the tackle, so it was an area that they had to focus on, said Cruden.
The vigorous French performance surprised some fans, but he said the All Blacks knew they were always going to fight to the bitter end.
"We were probably just a little bit slow to react," he said. "We probably expected them to may be kick a little bit more and they surprised with running it, and trying to counter a lot."
- By Nick Tolerton of the Christchurch Star
