Their dominant pack was the impetus used to deal New Zealand two convincing defeats; a 13–6 win at Lancaster Park in Christchurch and a 17–6 win at Eden Park in Auckland, taking the series 2–1.

The hero of the decider was centre Louis Babrow, who scored two critical tries.

Babrow nearly did not feature in the last test as he was an observant Jew and the match fell on Yom Kippur; however, he justified playing on a high holy day by saying that the sun had not yet risen in South Africa by the time of kickoff in New Zealand.

Scores and results list South Africa's points tally first.

Scores and results list South Africa's points tally first.