In the wake of the clash between the Springbokke & the Wallabies in Perth on Saturday, one thing is for sure. It will be a thriller!

Interesting is the fact that the Springbok coach included Ruan Pienaar at fullback. Some guru`s reckon it is because Peter De Villiers refuses to pick overseas based players. Frans Steyn will be joining Racing Metro after the Tri-Nations. If it is true, it is unlikely that Steyn will be in the starting line up again, until he returns to play rugby in South Africa.

The other is, Schalk Burger is on the bench for injured Danie Rossouw. Heinrich Brüssow retains his place so does flyhalf Morné Steyn. Burger served out his suspension & will be out to prove he is still the “rock” he once was.

The Wallabies made a few changes- Ryan Cross at out side centre, joining him in midfield is Adam Ashley-Cooper & Peter Hynes takes up the responsibility of wing in the place of Drew Mitchell. That gives a whole new look to their back line.

Up front Australia coach Robbie Deans had to use Mark Chisholm as lock for injured Nathan Sharpe & in the front row, Ben Alexander starts ahead of Al Baxter.

Looking at the two line ups, it is clear the Springboks is looking for an attacking burst from Pienaar. While the Boks might not divert totally from the kicking approach, it may seem that they see the Aussies as the “milk cows” of the competition.

Hit by injuries the Wallabies is basically covering their bases and hoping for the best. The new look backline will have difficulty reading each other, especially under pressure situations, therefore a win for the Springbokke is likely.

Look for Schalk Burger to come on in the second half and run wild & Fourie du Preez, he is playing in his 50th Test.

Although the Wallabies will come hard in the first quarter of the game the Springbokke should win comfortably if they stick to their gameplan. 

Predicted Score: Springbokke 36 – 19 Wallabies.  

Springbokke – 15 Ruan Pienaar, 14 JP Pietersen, 13 Jaque Fourie, 12 Jean de Villiers, 11 Bryan Habana, 10 Morné Steyn, 9 Fourie du Preez, 8 Pierre Spies, 7 Juan Smith, 6 Heinrich Brüssow, 5 Victor Matfield, 4 Bakkies Botha, 3 John Smit (c), 2 Bismarck du Plessis, 1 Beast Mtawarira.
Subs: 16 Chiliboy Ralepelle, 17 Jannie du Plessis, 18 Andries Bekker, 19 Schalk Burger, 20 Ricky Januarie, 21 Adi Jacobs, 22 Frans Steyn.

Wallabies – 15 James O’Connor, 14 Lachie Turner, 13 Ryan Cross, 12 Adam Ashley-Cooper, 11 Peter Hynes, 10 Matt Giteau, 9 Luke Burgess, 8 Richard Brown, 7 George Smith (c), 6 Rocky Elsom, 5 Mark Chisholm, 4 James Horwill, 3 Ben Alexander, 2 Stephen Moore, 1 Benn Robinson.
Subs: 16 Tatafu Polota-Nau, 17 Al Baxter, 18 Dean Mumm, 19 David Pocock, 20 Will Genia, 21 Quade Cooper, 22 Drew Mitchell.