The pendulum has well and truly swung back to the All Blacks.

Now the big question is whether they can maintain their hold over the Springboks - and other nations - for the 14 months between now and the rugby World Cup.

Playing with a lethal mix of speed and energy, they overwhelmed South Africa 31-17 in a second lopsided Tri-Nations Test on Saturday, in the process reversing the balance of power between the sport's greatest rivals.

The 80th Test between the teams closely resembled the 79th a week earlier in Auckland.

New Zealand's forwards were lower and hungrier at the breakdown while their propensity to attack from anywhere on the park will surely leave the Springboks assessing the future of their own tactics.

Saturday night's greasy conditions at Westpac Stadium should have favoured the fired-up Springboks, who rely on their rumbling forwards and towering bombs.

Yet the world champions - boasting a record 700 caps - were again run off their feet.

The likes of All Blacks halfback Piri Weepu, No.8 Kieran Read and hooker Keven Mealamu were to the forefront, too quick of mind and foot for their tired-looking rivals.

Coach Graham Henry was quick to play down his team's remarkable turnaround after being clean-swept by the South Africans a year ago. His words may be enough to keep at bay those critics who believe New Zealand perennially peak too early for World Cups.

"We're just a step ahead at this point in time," he said.

"But if we don't do the right preparation for the team and don't prepare correctly as individuals that could change very quickly."

He pointed to their next Tri-Nations Test against Australia in Melbourne on July 31 as a potential banana skin, even though they have beaten the Wallabies in their last seven meetings.

"Obviously we're delighted to win and we've played some pretty good rugby in the last couple of weeks but we were more clinical in Auckland than we were here last night.

"After 60 minutes it could have gone either way. I don't think we should get too carried away about the scoreline."

The win could have been bigger if five-eighth Daniel Carter had landed more than three of his eight shots at goal but tries are doing the business for the All Blacks. They have scored 24 in five Tests, one short of the 25 they totalled through 2009.

Springboks captain John Smit went searching for silver linings, stating he was pleased to improve on the Auckland effort.

"The result's still the same, we lost the game but there were far more positives to pull out," he said.

"The guys at least put up a fight, got stuck in. In the Tri-Nations you really have to be on the top of your game if you want to win away from home."

Smit admitted the All Blacks' all-purpose style would be something to plan for when they next meet, in Johannesburg on August 21.

"The All Blacks are getting a lot of quick ball and they're working hard for that and we didn't get too much quick ball, especially when it counted," he said.

"We put some really quick phases together close to the line but there were times when we couldn't put 4-5-6 of them together, it was just slowed down somewhere."

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