Springbok coach Rudolf Straeuli is poised to announce a starting team with only one black player.
Lawrence Sephaka is expected to be that player when the Boks take on Australia at Newlands on Saturday in the Tri-Nations opener.
Straeuli, however, is unconcerned. He said he had the full backing of the minister of sport, Ngconde Balfour.
The Bok team that trained at Bishops on Monday was the one Straeuli had said earlier would be the test line-up. It showed eight changes from the team that ran out in Port Elizabeth 10 days ago to play Argentina.
The last time only one black player made it to a Springbok team was two years ago. Wing Breyton Paulse was the solitary black Bok in the starting XV at Newlands in a Tri-Nations Test against New Zealand.
South Africa, with Harry Viljoen as coach, lost that match 12-3.
It now looks likely that lock Quinton Davids, who started the Test against Argentina with centre Gcobani Bobo as South Africa's two black representatives on the field in Port Elizabeth, may be the only black player on the Bok bench on Saturday.
On Monday Straeuli, who has wing Ashwin Willemse recovering from an ankle injury and Paulse still out with a knee problem, defended his selection saying "My track record on transformation speaks for itself."
He said Springbok team manager Gideon Sam was in regular contact with with the sports minister, who had been supportive of the team and its objectives.
In 2002 Straeuli was applauded for including Paulse, centre Adrian Jacobs, scrumhalf Bolla Conradie and Sephaka in his Bok squad. And against Australia at the Gabba, Straeuli named Paulse, Conradie and Sephaka, in his starting line-up with Jacobs on the bench.
But this year Conradie has not been given an opportunity at halfback while veteran Joost van der Westhuizen and Sharks scrumhalf Craig Davidson were favoured for the three tests against Scotland and Argentina.
South African Rugby has also said that quotas prescribing how many black players should be in the Bok squad were unnecessary and had been scrapped - although it had become the norm to field at least two black players in starting line-ups.
The team that trained at Bishops had Sephaka in for Robbie Kempson at loosehead as one of the eight changes from the starting line-up against Argentina.
Bobo looks almost certain to drop out at inside centre for De Wet Barry, who is poised to start his first Test of the year with Thinus Delport on the left wing for Pieter Rossouw.
Van der Westhuizen is back at scrumhalf for Davidson and in the pack, exciting young No 8 Juan Smith gets the chance to start his first test in place of Bob Skinstad, who has flu.
At No 7 Wikus van Heerden is in for AJ Venter while in the second row Bakkies Botha looks set to replace Davids. The other likely change is in the front row where Richard Bands has surfaced as the No 1 tighthead with Cobus Visagie having been axed.
Straeuli has been criticised for inconsistency this year, but on Monday he said minimal changes were now in the offing and that his Tri-Nations squad was closer than ever to the final World Cup selection that will be announced on August 30.
He explained that naming 33 players instead of 26 in his Tri-Nations squad was a continuation of the sifting process and that the final 26 would be announced before the team left for the overseas leg of the tournament.
Straeuli also emphasised that rising young under-21 stars Derick Hougaard, who played for the South Africa A team against Namibia on Saturday, and Enrico Januarie, the surprise name in his Tri-Nations squad, had not been selected only to broaden international experience for the future.
"They are definitely in the mix as two young talents there not only to build confidence, but also to give them a chance to be in the World Cup squad. Both can still make it," he said.
But with numbers earmarked to make the final cut shrinking by the day, Straeuli named only Willemse, Paulse, Joe van Niekerk, Jean de Villiers, Werner Greeff and Faan Rautenbach as players in rehabilitation who were still a part of the big picture.
"Basically up until now we have been giving players opportunities and looking at combinations while some were coming back from rehabilitation. A lot of players were given a fair chance, so few can be disappointed, but the time for experimentation is over," said Straeuli, promising a lot more settled look to his side from now on.
Captain Corné Krige, already named as the man who will lead South Africa at the World Cup, said: "Up to now we have played only to about 40 percent of our potential. But I am confident we will step up against Australia. We know what to expect from them and what we must expect of ourselves."
Possible Springbok team:
Jaco van der Westhuyzen, Stefan Terblanche, Marius Joubert, De Wet Barry, Thinus Delport, Louis Koen, Joost van der Westhuizen, Juan Smith, Wikus van Heerden, Corné Krige (captain), Victor Matfield, Bakkies Botha, Richard Bands, Danie Coetzee, Lawrence Sephaka. Bench: John Smit, Rob Kempson, Quinton Davids, Selborne Boome, Pedrie Wannenburg, Craig Davidson, Brent Russell