Rassie Erasmus refused to claim superiority over New Zealand despite guiding the Springboks to a comprehensive series victory in Baltimore on Saturday night. The world champions completed a 3-1 triumph in the Greatest Rivalry series with a 43-28 win at M&T Bank Stadium, outscoring the All Blacks by six tries to four.
Yet Erasmus remained characteristically measured in victory, insisting the contest hung in the balance deep into the second half. "No, I won't say we were the better team. At minute 60 I thought it was still in the balance," Erasmus said. "Up until the last 11 minutes I wasn't sure if we were going to win. We appreciate that we won, but we definitely don't think the gap between us and New Zealand is this big."
The Springbok head coach attributed the series triumph to experience rather than outright dominance, pointing to an average age of 31 in his starting XV. Erasmus defended his policy of wholesale rotation during the Nations Championship whilst maintaining continuity against New Zealand, explaining that series rugby demands the composure of seasoned campaigners. "Our experience from playing a series against a team like the British & Irish Lions or a World Cup, you have to have the guys that you know are experienced and they can still manage the pace of the game," he said.
Aerial battle proves decisive
Former Springbok captain Jean de Villiers highlighted the manner in which South Africa recovered from their opening defeat at Ellis Park to claim three consecutive victories. "This success will live long in the memory. We must celebrate how we recovered from losing the first Test to win three in a row," De Villiers told SuperSport TV. Fellow former skipper Victor Matfield singled out the aerial contest as the defining factor, noting South Africa's improvement as the series progressed. "A key factor was the aerial battle. I was worried about that aspect of the game before the series, but we grew stronger as the series developed," Matfield said.
Kurt-Lee Arendse's performance epitomised that dominance, the wing making three line-breaks before shifting to full-back and scoring a crucial late try. Scrum-half Morne van den Berg, who earned his first start of the series after an impressive cameo the previous week, was named man of the match after scoring South Africa's opening try.
All Blacks head coach Dave Rennie acknowledged the disappointment of becoming the first New Zealand side to lose three consecutive matches to South Africa since 2009, but insisted his team remained on the right trajectory. "The result hurts, but I am proud of the effort, excited about where our game's heading and knowing that we need to be better," Rennie said. The series defeat leaves New Zealand with significant ground to make up ahead of next year's Rugby Championship, whilst the Springboks head into the 2027 season with their status as the world's top-ranked side emphatically reinforced.