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The Springboks shrugged off an early red card to easily see off a spirited but outmatched Italian outfit 45-0 in front of a raucous Nelson Mandela Bay crowd.
After a spirited start from the hosts, fans feared the worst when Jasper Wiese was sent off midway through the opening half, but the Boks kept their composure, stuck to their structures, and turned on the style when they needed it to overwhelm the Italians despite their numerical disadvantage.
Following a hero's welcome for Test centurion Willie le Roux, the match kicked off with a little bit of Rassie-inspired trickery: a short kick-off from Handre Pollard picked out Andre Esterhuizen - a planned move - forcing a scrum on the halfway line. It didn't go according to plan, however, as referee Andrew Brace awarded the Italians a free kick.
The Boks were soon back in possession, and the opening try arrived a few minutes later courtesy of a beautifully executed backline move that started inside their own half. Quick ball to the outside found Edwill van der Merwe bursting into space, and he offloaded to Makazole Mapimpi, who surged down the touchline before feeding Grant Williams on his inside for a superb team try.
A couple of penalties put the Boks back on the attack with kicks to the corner, though it was from the back of a scrum that they scored their second try following another slick backline move that found Van der Merwe out wide.
With 21 minutes gone, however, disaster struck for the Boks, as what seemed like a fairly innocuous fight between Jasper Wiese and Italy loosehead Danilo Fischetti led to a check upstairs, where it was determined that the Bok No 8 had head-butted the prop, leading to a straight red card.
Perhaps sensing his side needed a lift, Rassie decided to bring Ox Nche on to the field, and the decision paid off immediately as the Bok scrum drove Italy back, leading to a penalty advantage and a free hit for the backline. From behind the scrum, Test centurion Willie le Roux delivered a trademark kick-through that found Van der Merwe, who hacked it ahead and won the race to dot down for the Boks' third try - and his second.
The Boks' eye for the try line had returned, and when another penalty put them back on the attack, it was a superbly-timed pass from Grant Williams that found Canan Moodie, who showed sensational pace and power to charge over the line despite the attention of several Italian defenders as an eventful first half ended 24-0 to the hosts.
With barely five minutes gone in the second half, the Boks' discipline let them down again as Wilco Louw copped a yellow card for a head-high tackle, reducing them to just 13. Italy's two-man advantage didn't last long, however - Fischetti was sin-binned for repeated breakdown infringements moments later as Italy lost a man too.
The Boks showed further innovation by setting up a lineout and maul in open play, with the pack driving to the line, where Malcolm Marx powered over for their fifth try.
With eight minutes remaining, the Boks finally broke through again as the ball found Mapimpi out wide and the winger obliged, delighting the Gqeberha crowd with South Africa's sixth try of the evening.
There was time for one more score from the South Africans after the hooter, replacement hooker Jan-Hendrik Wessels touching down in the corner before Libbok nailed the tough conversion to seal an emphatic victory.
