The match-23 feature only three changes from the group that faced the Irish with the only new players being Louw (No 8), two-time Rugby World Cup-winning scrumhalf Cobus Reinach, and replacement utility forward Ben-Jason Dixon.

The 22-year-old Feinberg-Mngomezulu is elevated to start at flyhalf after four appearances off the bench this season (coming on at either flyhalf or fullback) while Louw starts at No 8 after four replacement appearances since his debut at the start of the 2022 season.

Only six players are retained in the squad from the 64-21 win over Portugal at the end of July in Louw, Reinach, Dixon, Feinberg-Mngomezulu, RG Snyman (lock) and Kurt-Lee Arendse (wing).

The new halfback combination sees Reinach continue in the No 9 jumper in place of the Faf de Klerk, who is nursing a niggle, while experienced flyhalf Handre Pollard provides cover off the replacements’ bench, along with Grant Williams, who serves as back-up at scrumhalf and wing, in a six-two split in favour of the forwards.

Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus, who said that Snyman had picked up a niggle at training on Tuesday and will be monitored for the rest of the week, again named a powerful bomb squad with a front row of Malcolm Marx (hooker), Gerhard Steenekamp and Vincent Koch (both props), alongside Dixon, Marco van Staden and Kwagga Smith.

Erasmus was delighted to hand first starts to Feinberg-Mngomezulu and Louw and said: “Sacha has made a notable impact off the bench in all four Tests he has played so far, and he’s slotted into the system with ease, so we are excited to see what dynamic he adds to the team as a starter.

“His goal-kicking has also been impressive, and we know that against teams like Australia, New Zealand, and Argentina the margins are very small, so every point will count.

“We’re also keen to see what Elrigh brings to the game, given his consistently strong performances for the Vodacom Bulls in the last few seasons and off the bench against Portugal. With Pieter-Steph (du Toit) and Siya (Kolisi) alongside him, he’ll have good guidance to play to his strengths and do what he does best.”

Springbok team to face Australia in Brisbane:

15 – Willie le Roux (Vodacom Bulls) – 95 caps, 75 pts (15t)
14 – Cheslin Kolbe (Suntory Sungoliath) – 33 caps, 96 points (15t, 3c, 5p)
13 – Jesse Kriel (Canon Eagles) – 71 caps, 80 points (16t)
12 – Damian de Allende (Wild Knights) – 81 caps, 55 points (11t)
11 – Kurt-Lee Arendse (Vodacom Bulls) – 18 caps, 75 points (15t)
10 – Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu (DHL Stormers) – 4 caps, 17 points (7c, 1p)
9 – Cobus Reinach (Montpellier) – 33 caps, 65 pts (13t)

8 – Elrigh Louw (Vodacom Bulls) – 4 caps, 0 points
7 – Pieter-Steph du Toit (Toyota Verblitz) – 79 caps, 40 points (8t)
6 – Siya Kolisi (captain, Racing 92) – 85 caps, 50 points (10t)
5 – RG Snyman (Leinster) – 37 caps, 10 points (2t)
4 – Eben Etzebeth (Hollywoodbets Sharks) – 122 caps, 30 points (6t)
3 – Frans Malherbe (DHL Stormers) – 72 caps, 5 points (1t)
2 – Bongi Mbonambi (Hollywoodbets Sharks) – 71 caps, 70 points (14t)
1 – Ox Nche (Hollywoodbets Sharks) – 31 caps, 0 pts

Replacements:

16 – Malcolm Marx (Kubota Spears) – 67 caps, 85 points (17t)
17 – Gerhard Steenekamp (Vodacom Bulls) – 3 caps, 0 points
18 – Vincent Koch (Hollywoodbets Sharks) – 52 caps, 0 points
19 – Ben-Jason Dixon (DHL Stormers) – 2 caps, 5 points (1t)
20 – Marco van Staden (Vodacom Bulls) – 20 caps, 0 pts
21 – Kwagga Smith (Shizuoka Blue Revs) – 43 caps, 35 pts (7t)
22 – Grant Williams (Hollywoodbets Sharks) – 11 caps, 10 points (2t)
23 – Handré Pollard (Leicester Tigers) – 71 caps, 732 points (7t, 98c, 162p, 5dg)

Stats and facts:

Springbok record against Australia:

Played 93; Won 50; Lost 40; Drawn 3; Points for: 1 860, Points against: 1 653; Tries scored 218, Tries conceded 170; Highest score 61-22 (Pretoria, 1997); Biggest win 45 points (53-8, Johannesburg 2008). Win % 53.8%.

Miscellaneous:

  • This will be Eben Etzebeth’s 123rd Test, leaving him four appearances away from equalling Victor Matfield’s Springbok Test record (127).
  • Frans Malherbe will extend his number of starts at tighthead prop to 60 Tests, trailing only Tendai Mtawarira (102) and Os du Randt (75).
  • The centre pairing of Jesse Kriel and Damian de Allende will extend their record of playing the most Test matches together in the midfield to 31 (the previous record was held by Jean de Villiers and Jaque Fourie with 29 Tests).
  • Cheslin Kolbe needs four points to reach 100 points in Tests for South Africa.
  • Should Kwagga Smith take the field, he will need only six more Test caps to join the club of Springboks with 50 Test caps.
  • Willie le Roux will take another step closer to joining select club of Springbok centurions as he earns his 96th cap on Saturday.
  • The total Test caps for the Springbok starting line-up is 836.
  • There are 335 caps in the backline, with 501 caps among the forwards. On the bench there are a further 269 caps.
  • The average caps per player in the backline is 47, the forwards 62, while the players on the bench average 33.