South Africa sealed a 3-1 series victory over New Zealand with a 43-28 win in the fourth and final Test in Baltimore on Saturday, their first series triumph against the All Blacks in half a century.
The Springboks led 17-7 at half-time through converted tries from Damian de Allende and Morne van den Berg, but New Zealand clawed back to 17-14 before the break. Codie Taylor crossed for the All Blacks' first try following a Will Jordan line break, with Jordan then scoring himself after New Zealand worked through 32 phases — forcing his way over despite Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu's tackle.
The second half, however, belonged entirely to South Africa. Malcolm Marx crossed for his eighth try against New Zealand, drawing level with Bryan Habana as the country's highest try-scorer against the All Blacks. Pieter-Steph du Toit added another before Kurt-Lee Arendse produced a brilliant solo effort inside the final ten minutes to push the lead to 15 points. Replacement flanker Cameron Hanekom completed the scoring to underline the margin.
Van den Berg was influential throughout, scoring a try and making a decisive break early in the second half. Eben Etzebeth disrupted the New Zealand lineout repeatedly and won turnovers at the maul, while Jasper Wiese carried hard all evening. The Springbok backfield was composed under the high ball throughout.
New Zealand's other tries came from Ethan Blackadder and Beauden Barrett, with Damian McKenzie converting all four.
Scorers: South Africa 43 (17): Tries: De Allende, Van den Berg, Marx, Du Toit, Arendse, Hanekom. Conversions: Feinberg-Mngomezulu (2), Van den Berg, Libbok (2). Penalties: Feinberg-Mngomezulu. New Zealand 28 (14): Tries: Taylor, Jordan, Blackadder, Barrett. Conversions: McKenzie (4).