The Springboks will focus on the technical aspects of scrumming over the next couple of days, according to forwards coach Johann van Graan.
The Boks battled in the set piece against Argentina, especially in Salta where their whole front row was substituted by the 52nd minute of the match.
'We're going to scrum [at training] this afternoon and tomorrow afternoon, and hopefully it will go well on Saturday,' Van Graan told the media on Tuesday. 'Our focus has been on the technical aspects of the scrum, as we put in the hard yards last week. This week it will all be about the unity of the pack, our foot positioning, our binds and the space between the front rowers.'
While the Bok scrum has been poor, they have done well in the lineouts, and will be confident of dominating this aspect of the game in Perth with Victor Matfield back in the No 4 jersey, after he missed the two Pumas matches because of injury.
Van Graan, though, said the 113-Test veteran influences more than just the lineout.
'Victor is one of the best lock forwards to have ever played the game,' he said. 'There's his lineout play, but he also has great organisational skills around the field, especially on defence. He does good work at the kick-off, and he runs great lines on attack and always seems to pop up at the right place and the right time. It's great to have Victor back, his influence is huge.'
Meanwhile, Van Graan dismissed talk of the Wallabies scrum being 'soft' following their struggles against the All Blacks in Auckland last weekend.
'We have a lot of respect for them. They did well against the French pack [in June], and in Sydney [against the All Blacks] it was a big clash between two very good packs. And even in Auckland I thought they played some very good rugby, so there's no soft Wallabies pack.'
Van Graan was impressed with the way the All Blacks mauled at Eden Park and said it would, as always, be part of the Bok game.
'The New Zealanders put quite a few backs into their maul,' he said. 'They did something different and it may have been a surprise [for the Wallabies]. It was the first time in quite a few Test matches that I've seen that.
'But we're going to focus on our maul and the way we play. The maul is a big part of the South African game, so we will definitely maul if there's an opportunity.'
Photo: Ashley Vlotman/Gallo Images
