South Africa captain John Smit hailed man-of-the-match Heinrich Brussow after a 28-19 victory over New Zealand on Saturday got their Tri-Nations campaign off to a perfect start.

"He is a phenomenal find and is making a big difference for us and also making it very difficult for the opposition," Smit said of the 23-year-old Free State Cheetahs flanker who was playing only his fifth Test.

Tighthead prop Smit sympathised with the demanding schedule the All Blacks faced - playing on the Highveld just one week after defeating Australia by six points in the coastal city of Auckland.

"It's difficult to turn around from one week to the other and play at altitude," Smit admitted.

"It was a great start by the Springboks and hopefully we can take it further."

Coach Pieter de Villiers was ecstatic with the organisation of his team, who sealed success when centre Jaque Fourie scored a breakaway try eight minutes from full-time at Vodacom Park.

"Hats off to the tight five. I think a positive approach helped us - we knew we had to create our own chances."

New Zealand coach Graham Henry insisted the number of mistakes his side made, and not a tough schedule, was to blame for their first Test loss in Bloemfontein.

"There are no excuses. We have no complaints about the altitude or the turnaround time between the last Test and this one.

"This is a very good Springbok side. They deserve to be number one in the world."

New Zealand conceded a lot of first-half penalties and the margin of defeat could have been wider had South Africa five-eighth Ruan Pienaar not missed four of five kicks at goal.

However, it was the frequency with which the visitors conceded possession that frustrated Henry most.

"We needed more composure and discipline and should have created more opportunities," he reflected.

"A side cannot afford to make errors when you have the ball. We lost the battle, but not the war."

Skipper Richie McCaw felt the All Blacks were getting on top at one stage in the second half when they cut the deficit to four points thanks largely to the goal kicking of No.10 Stephen Donald.

"But we were forced into mistakes. There are things you just cannot afford to do in Test matches," said the flanker, referring to many turnovers in the tackle and handling errors.

Brought to you by AAP © 2024 AAP