Wales have received a boost after their captain Dewi Lake was declared fit to face the Springboks in their Nations Championship match in Durban on Saturday.
Wales head coach Steve Tandy named his side on Thursday, and with Lake nursing an injury, it was a key moment when his name was on the team sheet for the Welsh side going into a big test against the double World Cup holders.
Tandy made six changes to his side as well, but Lake’s availability was a massive boost for the side that will need every moment to go their way if they are to stop the Boks this weekend.
Wales beat Fiji in their opening Nations’ Championship match but then lost to Argentina 35-21 last weekend in San Juan.
Lake came off against Argentina with a groin strain and was in doubt the entire week before the announcement.
Their long journey to South Africa meant that fresh legs were needed and Tandy brought in new faces, including Louis Rees-Zammit, who celebrated a year back in rugby union this week after his sojourn in NFL.
Other than Rees-Zammit, there are starts for Teddy Williams, Alex Mann, Dan Edwards, Ben Thomas and Max Llewellyn.
Most of the names are very familiar to South African audiences, with Cardiff centre Thomas making his first appearance in the Nations Championship.
On the bench, Freddie Thomas, Tommy Reffell and Reuben Morgan-Williams also come in as replacements as Tandy opts for a six-two split.
“We’ve made some changes to the starting XV," said Tandy. "It’s coming to the end of the season; we’ve had a big bit of travel.
"Some boys deserve an opportunity and it’s a chance to freshen up the team.
“South Africa are world champions. They have loads of depth. For us, it's about putting our game out there. We want to see a real physical edge.
"We're going up against probably the most physical team in the world. So we know we're going to have to really step up the physicality. It's a great opportunity to test ourselves against the best team in the world.”
Wales: Blair Murray; Louis Rees-Zammit, Max Llewellyn, Ben Thomas, Josh Adams; Dan Edwards, Tomos Williams; Aaron Wainwright, Jac Morgan, Alex Mann, Adam Beard, Teddy Williams, Dillon Lewis, Rhys Carre.
Replacements: Ryan Elias, Nicky Smith, Ben Warren, Freddie Thomas, Tommy Reffell, James Botham, Reuben Morgan-Williams, Joe Hawkins.