It was a quiet journey through the international gate for the Wallabies as they arrived to prepare for Saturday's test against the All Blacks.
There were no fans waiting, and no formal welcome. The players quietly moved from the airport to a waiting bus.
The squad will spend two nights in Queenstown before heading to Dunedin by bus tomorrow morning.
Among their number is Peter Betham, the former Tasman winger who was battling for a Super 15 contract a year ago and is set for a surprise test debut.
Australia's growing wing crisis is expected to see Betham debut in the dead-rubber third Bledisloe Cup test after joining the Wallabies for the first time yesterday.
At the start of the year, the New Zealand-born flyer was rated the Waratahs' fourth-best winger, at best, but a strong season and a host of injuries to the country's best finishers has elevated him to the Wallabies.
With Joe Tomane and Chris Feauai-Sautia ruled out on Tuesday with hamstring problems, and Nick Cummins yet to recover from a broken hand, Betham was brought into the squad as the only fit specialist winger.
The wayward James O'Connor (suspended), France-bound Digby Ioane, Fiji-born Brumbies flyer Henry Speight (ineligible), Dom Shipperley (shoulder) and Rod Davies (knee) are also unavailable.
Australia's wing dramas had already forced coach Ewen McKenzie to move Adam Ashley-Cooper from his preferred position at centre for the 54-17 win over Argentina.
McKenzie could move Israel Folau to the wing instead of Betham and elevate fellow Waratah Bernard Foley to fullback, but that is unlikely, after the All Blacks successfully limited Folau's wing opportunities in the 47-29 and 27-16 Bledisloe losses in August.
A 2006 Australian Schoolboys representative, Betham's meteoric rise comes after failed stints with the Brumbies, Waratahs and Rebels, from 2008 to 2011.
The 24-year-old turned his career around with an eye-catching 2012 season with Tasman in the ITM Cup, which resulted in an upgraded NSW contract.
The Wallabies included another New Zealand-born back in their travel squad yesterday. Radar-boot Mike Harris is likely to be picked as a reserve.
Loose forwards Liam Gill and Dave Dennis are also among the 24-man squad and appear to be battling for a position on the bench.
- Additional reporting by AAP.