The Springboks have suffered another damaging blow to their hopes of a badly needed, restorative Test win over Ireland tomorrow with the news that flanker Juan Smith suffered a pulled hamstring in training yesterday.
The flanker thereby becomes the sixth player from Jake White's original selection of 22 to be ruled out through injury for the new coach's first game in charge. Pedrie Wannenburg moves from number eight to the flank, with Jacques Cronje promoted from the bench to the starting line-up.
He will be the Boks' fourth debutant against Ireland, and another uncapped player, Gerrie Britz, has been called up to the replacements.
Smith had been only one of five players retained from the starting line-up which lost 29-9 to New Zealand in the World Cup quarter-finals last November. The remaining four are hooker and captain John Smit, locks Victor Matfield and Bakkies Botha, and full-back Jaco van der Westhuyzen.
Meanwhile, Australia coach Eddie Jones has named two new caps and three full backs in the Wallabies side to face Scotland in Sunday's first Hopetoun Cup Test in Melbourne.
Clyde Rathbone, the former South Africa Under-21 captain, will make his Wallabies debut in the centre alongside Matt Giteau.
And Radike Samo, who rejected the chance to play for Fiji to follow his dream of becoming a Wallaby, will start at blindside flanker, providing Australia with a third genuine lineout jumper to challenge Scotland's superior set-piece.
But as well as the new Wallabies, Jones unveiled a radical new attacking approach which will see Joe Roff, Lote Tuqiri and Wendell Sailor interchange at full back, providing a fluid back-three aimed at placing more pressure on Scotland's defensive kicking.
AUSTRALIA: J Roff; W Sailor, C Rathbone, M Giteau, L Tuqiri; S Larkham, G Gregan (capt); B Young, B Cannon, A Baxter, J Harrison, N Sharpe, R Samo, G Smith, D Lyons. Replacements: J Paul, M Dunning, D Vickerman, P Waugh, M Turinui, M Burke, C Latham.
SCOTLAND: Southwell; Lamont, Hinshelwood, Henderson, Webster, Parks, Cusiter; T Smith, Bulloch, Douglas, Grimes, Murray (capt), White, Macfadyen, Hogg. Replacements: Scott, C Smith, Fullarton, Petrie, Blair, Ross, Morrison.
