New Zealand flyhalf Daniel Carter scored 14 points and set up a try for Jerome Kaino as he led the All Blacks to a hard-fought 19-8 victory over the world champions South Africa in their Tri-Nations opener on Saturday.

Carter slotted four penalties and converted Kaino's second half try at Westpac Stadium to seal New Zealand's 30th successive home test victory.

Bryan Habana scored a late first half try while Butch James added a penalty for South Africa, who had their own 14-test unbeaten run snapped with the defeat.

The match, played in semi-darkness for 20 minutes when one of the floodlight towers went out in the first half, was the first test to be played under the International Rugby Board's (IRB) Experimental Law Variations (ELVs).

The All Blacks attempted to use the laws to their advantage and play the game at a high tempo, though the South African forwards produced a brutal defensive effort and threw themselves into the breakdown with little regard for their personal safety.

Carter was also the target of several off-the-ball incidents, with opposing flyhalf James making a number of questionable late tackles on him.

Carter and James exchanged penalties in the first seven minutes before the match settled into a war of attrition with the former adding two more penalties to give his side a 9-3 lead with half an hour gone.

The South Africans capitalised on several of New Zealand's errors with Habana's try the result of a missed tackle on Jean de Villiers, who ran into space and threw a long pass to the 2007 IRB Player of the Year to slide over the line under a covering tackle.

James missed the sideline conversion to leave the score 9-8 at the break.

The All Blacks extended the lead early in the second half with a sustained build-up that swept across the field before Carter ghosted through a gap in the defence and passed to Kaino, who forced his way over in the corner.

The number eight had a second try disallowed after pouncing on a Carter stab-kick, with referee Stuart Dickinson ruling that Kaino was offside, though television replays suggested he was behind the flyhalf when the kick was made.

Carter added his fourth penalty in the 72nd minute and the All Blacks spent the last eight minutes inside South African territory but were unable to extend their advantage.

The teams meet again in the second match of the tournament, which also includes Australia, in Dunedin next Saturday

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