Isaiah Papali'i said New Zealand felt it had controlled much of the match, despite losing 24-22 to Australia in Thursday's Rugby League World Cup opener.
The Kiwis had more possession and completed a higher percentage of their sets, but Australia's two intercept tries helped turn the contest.
Casey McLean scored first for New Zealand before Jack Bostock intercepted Jahrome Hughes' pass and ran the length of the field to score.
Tom Trbojevic then raced onto a McLean pass for another long-range try, putting Australia ahead before the break.
The teams traded scores after half-time, until Bostock completed his hat-trick four minutes from full-time to secure the Kangaroos' win.
Papali'i said the narrow loss was frustrating, but the Kiwis remained positive about their performance and plans for the tournament.
"It's like a little decision thing where they capitalise on and we'll definitely learn from it."
"I think the boys were pretty calm because we kind of had the same feeling where we're all over them not only that first quarter but I felt like the whole game.
"We've still got review to do this arvo but I'm pretty certain that the camp feels positive about how we played and how we went about the game plan."