Springboks Thrash All Blacks 43-28 to Clinch Series 3-1

South Africa beat New Zealand 43-28 in Baltimore to complete a 3-1 series win in Rugby's Greatest Rivalry Test series.

South Africa thrashed New Zealand 43-28 in the fourth and final Test of Rugby's Greatest Rivalry series at M+T Bank Stadium, sealing a 3-1 series victory in front of a capacity 71,000 crowd. Tries came from Damian de Allende, who scored early in each half, Morne van den Berg, Malcolm Marx, Pieter-Steph du Toit, Kurt-Lee Arendse and Cameron Hanekom. New Zealand replied through recalled captain Codie Taylor, Will Jordan, Ethan Blackadder and Beauden Barrett, but the All Blacks were always chasing the game.

The Springboks led the series 2-1 after the opening three Tests in South Africa, and their dominance in Baltimore was total at the breakdown, setpiece and aerial battle. The first half was held up for more than eight minutes after a failure in communication equipment between the match officials, but the interruption had no impact on the outcome. New Zealand threatened a comeback, closing to 29-21, before Arendse gathered a loose ball, ran from deep in his own half, side-stepped defenders and scampered away for the key fifth try.

Springbok captain Siya Kolisi paid tribute to coach Rassie Erasmus, saying he reminds players where they come from and that the team plays for the injured, those who could not make the tour, and the people of South Africa. All Blacks hooker Codie Taylor had few complaints, conceding that South Africa 'stacked a few more moments' across the last couple of games and proven why they are world champions. Taylor insisted the series defeat is a good stepping stone as New Zealand build towards the 2027 Rugby World Cup.

The result completes a 3-1 series triumph for the world champion Springboks and underlines, with World Cup swagger on show, that South Africa will take some beating as both sides build towards the 2027 tournament. Taylor's acknowledgment that New Zealand are 'at an interesting place as a rugby nation' frames the All Blacks' rebuilding task, even as he assured fans back home that the squad is working hard. Off the field, South Africa's international profile continues to broaden: according to ua.news, the government has outlined a phased plan for sovereign satellite communications, from leasing capacity to building its own geostationary satellite.