It’s a title they won’t feel comfortable about, but the All Blacks are apparently thriving as the yellow card kingpins of Test rugby.

Hooker Dane Coles was shown the team’s seventh yellow card this year at a crucial stage of Saturday’s 24-21 win over England at Twickenham.

They not only survived the 10 minutes after his 56th-minute exit for lashing out with his foot but prospered, scoring an unanswered penalty in that period to extend their lead.

Captain Richie McCaw said a familiar feeling came over the team at that point, similar to when lock Patrick Tuipulotu went to the sin bin with 20 minutes left in last month’s late defeat of the Wallabies in Brisbane.

“Sometimes when you’re down to 14 men, it flicks a switch,” said McCaw, who was sin-binned himself this year.

“The boys adapt pretty well and that’s what’s pleasing, you’ve got guys who are good enough to understand what’s required.”

Coach Steve Hansen won’t ask his team to deliberately lose a man against Scotland in Edinburgh on Saturday to pump them up.

However, he admits at Twickenham the yellow card worked a treat psychologically.

“The reality is that we won the game in that 10 minutes,” he said.

“That was all about showing more urgency, being more accurate with the things we were doing.

“I think that hurt England a wee bit.”

A good example of their composure was the lineout throwing efforts of diminutive halfback Aaron Smith in the absence of a specialist hooker.

No.8 Kieran Read, who claimed Smith’s two throws, says it was a scenario they had practised.

“He got the first one right, which the ref called back. He was a bit low with the second one.”

The world champions have made more trips to the sin bin than any tier one nation this year but they have some work to do to catch serial offenders Russia.

The tier two side have been shown 17 yellow cards, eight more than nearest rivals Uruguay.

SEEING YELLOW IN 2014

17 – Russia

9 – Uruguay

8 – Romania

7 – New Zealand, Spain

Other tier one nations:

6 – Wales

5 – France

4 – Italy, Argentina, Scotland

3 – England, South Africa, Australia