Please find that 80 minute formula Boks

In the 160 minutes of rugby, if one were to be brutally honest, the Springboks have played exactly 40 minutes of decent rugby and 20 minutes of sublime rugby.

Yes, the transition from decent to sublime at Ellis Park did come thanks to some shrewd second half substitutions by Bok coach Allister Coetzee, but they also encountered a badly fading Irish side in the highveld altitude, as the visitors squandered a very handy 23-10 lead in the final quarter.

With the three-match Test Series still balancing on a knife's edge and up for grabs in this weekend's third Test in Port Elizabeth, Coetzee is faced with some tricky selection decisions to make as he decides who the best 23 players are to finish the job at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium on Saturday -- Kick-off 5pm.

A number of players who intially warmed the bench in Jo'burg last weekend put their hands up and made their presence felt following one of the worst first halves of rugby I had personally seen from a Bok team in my lifetime.

It would seem the general consencus among the fans and armchair selectors right now is that 'If it works, why tinker with it' and it is Coetzee's duty to reward those players with a starting berth in PE.

If anything, it would serve to sustain the momentum gained over Ireland and keep their stranglehold on a shell-shocked Ireland with which they left Ellis Park. But again it has to be emphasized that Coetzee wants an 80 minute effort, not 20.

The names of the talented Lions quartet of Julian Redelinghuys, Ruan Combrinck, Warren Whiteley and Franco Mostert spring immediately to mind. Let's, however, forget which franchise they play for and look at their respective contributions to the Springbok cause.

Duane Vermeulen, who admittedly looked half the player he was when he was SA Rugby's Player of the Year in 2014, is injured and the door would appear to be open for Whiteley, so providing the Lions skipper has managed to shake off a shoulder niggle, he should start.

With Whiteley promoted to the run-on side that could finally pave the way for Jaco Kriel to make his Bok debut off the bench as loose forward cover.

The front row may have a slightly different look about it. Frans Malherbe has definitely not covered himself in glory and became something of a walking penalty to the Irish with recurring errors in the ruck and side entries and Coetzee's patience may have worn thin.

There are strong suggestions that the uncapped former Stormers hard man Stephen Kitshoff, who plies his trade with Bordeaux in France, may see Springbok action. Malherbe's superior experience may see him get the thumbs-up again, but I have Kitshoff in my starting XV.

I also have the right-footed Combrinck starting on the wing after his Man of the Match performance last week, but I still see Coetzee placing faith initially in Lwazi Mvovo. Combrinck is also no stranger to the fullback role either and provides cover too for the hot and cold-blowing Willie le Roux.

The halfback combination of Elton Jantjies and Faf de Klerk should remain unaltered.

The hosts have now used their 'Get out of Jail Free' card and as Coetzee has now realised, when they cut out the errors and build momentum, then the Boks are a very difficult side to play against.

And that is what he is looking for over an 80 minute stretch in PE. The burning question is if Ireland will allow them to. That defeat at Ellis Park is really hurting.

My Bok Team: 

15 Willie le Roux, 14 JP Pietersen, 13 Lionel Mapoe, 12 Damien de Allende, 11 Ruan Combrinck, 10 Elton Jantjies, 9 Faf de Klerk, 

8 Warren Whiteley, 7 Siya Kolisi, 6 Francois Louw 5 Pieter-Steph du Toit, 4 Eben Etzebeth, 3 Stephen Kitshoff, 2 Adriaan Strauss (c), 1 Beast Mtawarira.

Subs: Bongi Mbonambi, Coenie Oosthuizen/Francois Malherbe, Julian Redelinghuys, Jaco Kriel, Franco Mostert, Lwazi Mvovo. Rudy Paige, Morne Steyn.