Bloemfontein - Australian match-winner Kurtley Beale said he didn't know until the last moment that he was going to take the penalty kick which clinched a 41-39 Tri-Nations win over South Africa.

"I didn't know who was supposed to take the kick," he told reporters after the game. "I was busy looking for 'Gits' (Matt Giteau), but he'd left the field."

Then he wondered whether he or flyhalf Quade Cooper would be entrusted with what was the last kick of the match, from near the right touchline and just inside the South African half.

But when skipper Rocky Elsom told him to tee it up he said he was determined to succeed, especially because by his own admission he had made some errors at fullback as the Springboks stormed back from a 31-6 deficit to take the lead.

"When I stepped up to take that final kick, I knew I couldn't let the boys down," said Beale.

"The guys wanted me to take the kick and I knew I had to stick to the process and not worry about the crowd. It's definitely a career highlight. To win a match for the Wallabies, it doesn't get better."

Coach Robbie Deans said it was an important win for the Wallabies.

"It was a remarkable game of rugby - both the last two games have been. It's great for the paying spectators.

"We are delighted to have got home in the end. It took a lot of resilience from the boys and it will serve us well going forward."

Springbok captain John Smit said he was disappointed with his team's Tri-Nations campaign, during which they plunged from champions in 2009 to the wooden spoon, winning only one match in six and leaking 22 tries, including 12 in three home games.

"Everyone knows here we have players with experience," said Smit.

"I told all the players that we have to get up tomorrow and have a good long hard look at ourselves in the mirror and see if we've brought everything we have got to the team.

"The margins are small but for two weeks in a row now we have had to play catch-up rugby and we don't want that.

"We want to be clinical for a full 80 minutes and if we are honest with ourselves we are below par and off the pace. It certainly did seem way too easy for them to get through our defence."

Coach Peter de Villiers insisted that the Springboks had the structures in place to carry them through to the 2011 World Cup and beyond.

"If we execute our plans perfectly it will be very difficult to score against us," he insisted.