Saints scrum-half Cobus Reinach will start for South Africa this weekend as the Rugby Championship winners take on Argentina in Pretoria.
Northampton's No.9, 29, will earn his 12th cap for the Springboks on Saturday and will hope to keep himself into contention for Rassie Erasmus’ World Cup squad.
“No matter what has happened before this weekend, the momentum we will go to the World Cup with will depend on what happens on Saturday,” Erasmus said.
“Some of these players will know they are on the plane but for others it is make or break – and even if they don’t make the plane there will be six standby roles to be identified.
“We’ve picked a formidable pack and we saw what the backline did against Australia so I am really excited to see what they can do on Saturday to prove their own case and also show just how strong South African rugby is.”
“Some of these players will know they are on the plane but for others it is make or break.”
Rassie Erasmus
Meanwhile centre Rory Hutchinson is set to make his debut at senior international level after he was named amongst the replacements for Scotland’s Test in France.
The 23-year-old is Scotland’s most-capped international at Under-21 level, but after a standout second half of the season for the men in Black, Green and Gold, he now has the opportunity to stake his claim for a place in Gregor Townsend’s Rugby World Cup squad.
Townsend said: “A huge amount of work has gone in throughout the past two months in order to deliver our best level of performance in the Rugby World Cup.
“As a coaching group we’re pleased to be able to take a strong squad across to France for this opening Test. We’ve been impressed by the quality of play they’ve delivered in training but fundamentally it’s been about preparing to play.
“These four Tests are a vital part of that process in terms of testing our systems and combinations but also in seeing which players put their best foot forward when it comes to selection for the final 31-man group going to Japan next month.”
Springbok team to play Argentina in Pretoria
15. Warrick Gelant (Vodacom Bulls)
14. Sbu Nkosi (Cell C Sharks)
13. Jesse Kriel (Vodacom Bulls)
12. André Esterhuizen (Cell C Sharks)
11. Dillyn Leyds (DHL Western Province)
10. Elton Jantjies (Emirates Lions)
9. Cobus Reinach (Northampton, England)
1. Thomas du Toit (Cell C Sharks)
2. Schalk Brits (Vodacom Bulls)
3. Vincent Koch (Saracens, England)
4. RG Snyman (Vodacom Bulls)
5. Lood de Jager (Vodacom Bulls)
6. Siya Kolisi (DHL Western Province)
7. Rynhardt Elstadt (Toulouse, France)
8. Marcell Coetzee (Ulster, Northern Ireland)
Replacements:
16. Scarra Ntubeni (DHL Western Province)
17. Lizo Gqoboka (Vodacom Bulls)
18. Wilco Louw (DHL Western Province)
19. Marvin Orie (Emirates Lions)
20. Marco van Staden (Vodacom Bulls)
21. Kwagga Smith (Emirates Lions)
22. Faf de Klerk (Sale Sharks, England)
23. Frans Steyn (Montpellier, France)
Scotland team to play France at the Allianz Riviera
15. Stuart Hogg (Exeter Chiefs)
14. Darcy Graham (Edinburgh)
13. Huw Jones (Glasgow Warriors)
12. Duncan Taylor (Saracens)
11. Byron McGuigan (Sale Sharks)
10. Adam Hastings (Glasgow Warriors)
9. Ali Price (Glasgow Warriors)
1. Jamie Bhatti (Edinburgh)
2. Stuart McInally (Edinburgh)
3. Simon Berghan (Edinburgh)
4. Ben Toolis (Edinburgh)
5. Grant Gilchrist (Edinburgh)
6. John Barclay (Edinburgh)
7. Jamie Ritchie (Edinburgh)
8. Josh Strauss (Blue Bulls)
Replacements:
16. George Turner (Glasgow Warriors)
17. Gordon Reid (Ayrshire Bulls)
18. Zander Fagerson (Glasgow Warriors)
19. Scott Cummings (Glasgow Warriors)
20. Matt Fagerson (Glasgow Warriors)
21. George Horne (Glasgow Warriors)
22. Rory Hutchinson (Northampton Saints)
23. Blair Kinghorn (Edinburgh)
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