Frans Malherbe will start at tighthead prop in one of just two changes to the Springbok team to face the USA at London's Olympic Stadium on Wednesday.

Malherbe comes in for Jannie du Plessis, who has a niggle, while Lwazi Mvovo replaces the injured JP Pietersen on the wing.

There were thoughts that the Boks might chop and change to a larger degree in their final pool game, but coach Heyneke Meyer has stuck with his strongest team.

On the bench, Rudy Paige could make his Test debut if he comes on, while Morné Steyn takes the place of Pat Lambie.

'Wednesday’s match against a much-improved USA team is a must-win for us if we want to progress to the quarter-finals, which is one of the reasons why we decided to go with continuity,' Meyer said. 'We also have a number of players who returned to action from injuries recently and it’s important to give them game time against an opponent who will physically challenge us this week.'

Meyer said it would be pleasing to see Paige and Steyn in the match 23 for the first time during the tournament, while Mvovo, Oosthuizen and Brits also deserved another run.

'All five of them have worked incredibly hard over the last couple of months and deserve this opportunity – it’s now in their hands to make the most of it.'

Photo: Steve Haag/Gallo Images