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London - A battle of the flyhalves will determine whether the Springboks or Wales progress to the last four of the Rugby World Cup, former England and Scotland coach Andy Robinson believes.
The Dragons are looking to reach the semi-finals for a second successive World Cup, while the Boks are out to replicate their title successes of 1995 and 2007.
Flyhalf Dan Biggar has scored almost half of Wales' 117 points at the tournament so far, and his opposite number, 21-year-old Handre Pollard, is yet to taste defeat as a starter.
“This game will come down to how well the two 10s perform,” Robinson was quoted as saying on the Rugby World Cup’s official website.
“That means discipline is key for both sides in terms of how many penalties they give away.
“If Pollard can get his game management right and keep the scoreboard ticking over, which he did so well against Scotland, he will put South Africa in a great position to win the game.
“I’ve been really impressed by Pollard so far. He’s understood when to take points and scored a great drop-goal against Scotland."
But Robinson, who coached Scotland four years ago at the Rugby World Cup in New Zealand, believes Wales should not be written off.
"They have dug deep throughout the tournament and the injuries they have had would affect any side. They will feel they are on a rite of passage to get to the semi-finals of this World Cup, and Biggar could be the man to take them there.
“He’s had a phenomenal tournament with the boot, only missing one kick, and you can see him taking the game for Wales. The battle of the number 10s is going to be great.”
Saturday’s clash at Twickenham is scheduled for 17:00 (SA time).
Teams:
South Africa:
15 Willie le Roux, 14 JP Pietersen, 13 Jesse Kriel, 12 Damian de Allende, 11 Bryan Habana, 10 Handre Pollard, 9 Fourie du Preez (captain), 8 Duane Vermeulen, 7 Schalk Burger, 6 Francois Louw, 5 Lood de Jager, 4 Eben Etzebeth, 3 Frans Malherbe, 2 Bismarck du Plessis, 1 Tendai Mtawarira
Substitutes: 16 Adriaan Strauss, 17 Trevor Nyakane, 18 Jannie du Plessis, 19 Pieter-Steph du Toit, 20 Willem Alberts, 21 Ruan Pienaar, 22 Pat Lambie, 23 Jan Serfontein.
Wales:
TBA
