The Springboks will host Wales in the third and final Castle Lager Incoming Series in Cape Town on Saturday at 17h00 and if they are not careful they will be part of a history-making team, that will be remembered for their "failures" rather than brilliance.
The Springboks lost their first test ever against Wales in South Africa a week ago in Bloemfontein and although a lot of "positives" was supposedly taken from the loss the general rugby supporters did not share the opinion of the Springbok camp.
Wales is expected to continue with their current game plan and will be boosted by the fact that the final test will be played at sea-level, knowing that they were more than competitive on the highveld. Added to that, is the fact that the pitch of the DHL Stadium will also "nullify" the Springboks' upper hand come scrum-time.
The Springboks will have their backs to the wall and if they don’t get a proper game going early in the test, they could just lose the Series.
Springbok coach Jacques Nienaber made 11 changes to his starting lineup as Eben Etzebeth earns his 100th Test cap and Bongi Mbonambi his 50th.
Nienaber named a new-look backline featuring the versatile Damian Willemse at fullback, with Cheslin Kolbe and Makazole Mapimpi back on the wings, while the regular centre pairing of Damian de Allende and Lukhanyo Am will again partner up in the midfield.
The Bok coach retained the halfback pairing of Handre Pollard and Jaden Hendrikse in the backline, while regular Bok captain Siya Kolisi reclaims the captaincy in loose trio with Pieter-Steph du Toit (flanker) and Jasper Wiese (No 8).
The other changes up front see Lood de Jager pair up with Etzebeth in the second row, while Nienaber named a new front row of props Trevor Nyakane and Frans Malherbe on either side of Mbonambi, who made his debut off the bench against Ireland in June 2016 and will become the 45th Bok to reach half a century of Test caps.
There were an array of changes among the replacements, which again features a split of six forwards and two backs, with Steven Kitshoff (prop), Franco Mostert, Kwagga Smith (utility forwards), and Elrigh Louw (flanker) featuring alongside scrumhalf Faf de Klerk and fullback Willie le Roux.
“Wales have shown over the years and in the last two matches that they are real fighters, and it will require a top-class performance from us on Saturday to register a victory and ultimately clinch the series.
“That said, Eben and Bongi have been true stalwarts to Springbok rugby, and we hope that we can make this a special occasion for them. No-one wants to remember losing their 100th or 50th Test, so we need to do everything we can to win the match.”
Of his team selection Nienaber said: “We selected a team and player combinations that we think will be the best for this specific game.
“We had an honest discussion with the players telling them what we require from them this weekend and what we would like to see in terms of their performance and hopefully they can produce the goods and we can get the desired result.
“We have high standards as a team, and we would like to maintain that and build momentum with a challenging season lying ahead.”
Nienaber expected another brave effort from Wales and said: “We pointed out from the outset of the series that Wales will be desperate and they showed that in the last two weeks.
“We are expecting another hard grind against them and the fact that they will be playing for their first series victory ever in South Africa will make them even more desperate to push us to the limit this weekend, so we know it will be an epic battle.
“That said, we are also playing in what is essentially a final for us and we know that we need to pitch up on the day and deliver a quality 80-minute performance to emerge victorious.”
Wayne Pivac has named the Wales team with only one change to the starting line-up that made history in Bloemfontein last weekend with the first ever victory for a Wales men’s side against the Springboks on their home soil.
Josh Adams, who went over for his 20th Wales try in the second Test to take him level with Gerald Davies, Gareth Edwards and Tom Shanklin on the all-time men’s try scoring list, returns to the starting XV. Adams and Louis Rees-Zammit are on the wings with Liam Williams at fullback.
George North, starting alongside Nick Tompkins in the centre for the third time in a row, will overtake Stephen Jones’ record as the most-capped Welsh men’s international back of all time this weekend, with 105 Wales appearances.
North made his debut for Wales in 2010 in a match against South Africa in Cardiff, scoring two tries on that occasion. Only Alun Wyn Jones (152) – named among Wales’ replacements – and defence coach Gethin Jenkins (129) have more Wales caps.
Owen Watkin comes in as a replacement, the only change to the Wales bench from last Saturday.
Pivac said: “Most people had written us off before we left Wales and to be in this position with an opportunity to win this series it’s a great position for us to be in. It’s fantastic that there’s something to play for in this Test match.
“However it’s been a tough training week because we’ve been a bit banged up as you’d expect after two very physical Test matches. So to have the majority of the squad that we arrived on these shores with available is a pretty good state to be in and we are really looking forward to the weekend.
“The atmosphere on match day has been excellent. South African fans are very loud, they support their side and they let you know what they are thinking of the occasion. It’s an environment that tests you and the players have so far stood up in both matches.
“We’re looking forward to another full house and another crowd that really gets behind the occasion and makes it a special one.”
Speaking about North and the record he is set to achieve on Saturday, Pivac added: “It’s fantastic for George. He’s worked really hard to come back from a major injury and to break that record is no mean achievement. I’m looking forward to seeing George out there on Saturday and hope he can have a stormer for us.”
Teams:
Springbok: 15. Damian Willemse, 14. Cheslin Kolbe, 13. Lukhanyo Am, 12. Damian de Allende, 11. Makazole Mapimpi, 10. Handre Pollard, 9. Jaden Hendrikse, 8. Jasper Wiese, 7. Pieter-Steph du Toit, 6. Siya Kolisi (c), 5, Lood de Jager, 4. Eben Etzebeth, 3. Frans Malherbe, 2. Bongi Mbonambi, 1. Trevor Nyakane. Replacements: 16. Malcolm Marx, 17. Steven Kitshoff, 18. Vincent Koch, 19. Franco Mostert, 20. Kwagga Smith, 21. Elrigh Louw, 22. Faf de Klerk, 23. Willie le Roux.
Wales: 15. Liam Williams, 14. Louis Rees-Zammit, 13. George North, 12. Nick Tompkins, 11. Josh Adams, 10. Dan Biggar (c), 9. Kieran Hardy, 8. Taulupe Faletau, 7. Tommy Reffell, 6. Dan Lydiate, 5. Adam Beard, 4. Will Rowlands, 3. Dillon Lewis, 2. Ryan Elias, 1. Gareth Thomas, Replacements: 16. Dewi Lake, 17. Wyn Jones, 18. Sam Wainwright, 19. Alun Wyn Jones, 20. Josh Navidi, 21. Tomos Williams, 22. Gareth Anscombe, 23. Owen Watkin.