New Zealand coach Graham Henry feels South Africa will be desperate to beat them on Saturday with the World Cup on the horizon.
The Springboks have insisted that they are using the Tri-Nations as a warm-up for the World Cup and have been beaten in all three of their matches to date.
South Africa coach Peter de Villiers has been rotating his squad to try and ascertain his best combination for the upcoming show-piece event.
And he will field another experimental side against the All Blacks in Port Elizabeth this weekend as the Boks look to get their first win of the competition.
De Villiers has repeatedly claimed that he is not too bothered about the results of the Tri-Nations matches this time around, but Henry has rubbished his comments and believes that all the South African players will care about is the result.
"I think it's very important," he said. "I would think Peter (de Villiers) and John (Smit) and the team will be desperate to win.
"It would just give them the little kick they need going into the World Cup.
"They haven't got another game so I would think it is vital for them to win."
Don’t forget – All 48 Rugby World Cup games live on Setanta (including the 35 games RTE don’t have)