The bad news for England after last night's 155-run loss to New Zealand in the National Bank Series ODI in Wellington is that Stephen Fleming and his side are only partly on the journey to where they want to be.

Delighted as he was with the margin and manner of the victory the CLEAR Black Caps captain was looking for bigger and better things.

The side had developed a lot of resolve in Australia recently and that had been reflected in the first and second games of this series. They understood there was still a lot more to do.

"We haven't nailed it, we haven't cracked it, but we're a lot closer to it," he said.

Part of the reason for yesterday's effort was the performance of the side in the middle-order batting.

"We've flirted with it in the last few games but we haven't put it together as a middle-order unit and we were determined to rectify that. We did some good things today and while I'm very happy because I'm part of it we're very happy that that base was given to the team.

"Fielding is something we're very proud of. It's a way of creating pressure, it's a way of creating outs and it's a way of trying to assert some dominance. If you're fielding well it becomes tougher as a batter, the bowlers get a lift from it. A good stop or a great catch and all of a sudden you can turn a game around with a couple of good bits of fielding," he said.

The slow pitch had been a concern going into the game and Fleming said he would have bowled first had he won the toss.

As it turned out the pitch held no demons.

"It just played slow. We've certainly got the players to use those conditions. And they did a fantastic job with the new ball. We took points out of today and we certainly adjusted better than the opposition and came away with a very good win and go 2-0 up in the series which is a very good position to be.

"In Napier we'd like to stamp our dominance with a different form of cricket with our pace bowlers which that wicket is more conducive to," he said.

Andre Adams' effort in opening with the new ball had been impressive.

"He's just growing in confidence. We all know he's got exciting ability but with confidence that can be dangerous. And he's certainly playing with confidence at the moment. His batting has been explosive. Some times it's going to be high risk."

And there was more evidence of Lou Vincent's versatility, back in the middle-order where he made his mark last summer.

"He's a quality player, he's fast. Don't ever under-estimate what a fast player will do for you in the middle.

"It can often be just as destructive as a hitter and combine him between Chris Cairns and Andre Adams you have got some work to do in the last 10 to defend it. And in the field as well he adds massive value," Fleming said.

© CricInfo