A return to action for Mark Andrews and Andre Snyman and a positional shift to fullback for Breyton Paulse are on the cards when Springbok coach Harry Viljoen later this week announces his team for the Twickenham showdown with England on Saturday.

Viljoen will be keen to prevent the high-riding English from recording their third consecutive win over the Springboks. The Boks the past Saturday bounced back from their disappointing defeat to France with a 54-26 win over Italy, but know they will have to improve significantly if they want to hold their own against England, who will be bolstered by the return of captain Martin Johnson.

Battle-hardened lock Andrews was given a bit of a breather against Italy, with AJ Venter taking over in the second row, while Snyman missed the game due to a head injury. Venter played well on Saturday, but Andrews' experience and hardnosed attitude will be needed against the rampant English eight. Snyman is a strong tackler and hard-running attacker, attributes that will come in handy against the big English backs.

Viljoen will have some difficult decisions to make. However, recalled players such as tighthead prop Willie Meyer, hooker John Smit and wing Dean Hall were impressive against Italy and would in all probability be retained. Viljoen said on Sunday he had been up all night considering his selection options, all of which were causing "severe headaches".

"We need a solid backline against England. We can dominate them by running hard at them with big strong players," he said. "One on one we can impose ourselves on them physically. Snyman was not considered against Italy because of a head injury, but he has recovered and can play an important role at Twickenham."

The versatile Snyman is at home at wing and centre and Viljoen said he will be indirectly influenced by the decision on who to play at flyhalf. "Ideally I would like to play both Louis Koen and Braam van Straaten, but I also want to make use of Snyman's strength," said the coach.

"Louis is probably a better flyhalf than Braam in terms of the structure he gives our play, but Braam is the better goalkicker, and we would love to have his reliability in such a high-pressure match."

Should Viljoen leave out one of the two, he can reunite the Natal Sharks midfield of Trevor Halstead and Snyman. Viljoen, surprisingly so, is considering using Paulse (pictured) at fullback - the player's preferred position.

"Another option is to play Snyman on the wing, with Breyton Paulse moving to fullback," Viljoen said. "These various conundrums are going to need a lot of careful thought. It is vital that we make the right calls to get the maximum utility out of the squad."

Paulse made his name as fullback before being switched to wing, but he hasn't played there much lately and against wily tactical kickers like Jonny Wilkinson and Mike Catt this move could backfire. However, Conrad Jantjes has battled with his positional play in the two Tests thus far and Paulse could even be more lethal on the attack from the back.

Viljoen's biggest headache upfront is the No 6 flank position, where he must decide whether ball-winning Corne Krige should replace Andre Vos. Andrews' return will lead to a shift to flank for AJ Venter in place of young Joe van Niekerk.

"It's a hard one," admitted Viljoen. "Vossie might be getting a little tired and Corne is in good form. We might need a player like Corne to play towards the ball to combat Neil Back." He said he will use the option of bringing on one of Vos and Krige in the second half, with Venter moving to lock in place of Andrews.

Possible Bok team: Breyton Paulse, Andre Snyman, Trevor Halstead, Braam van Straaten, Dean Hall, Louis Koen, Joost van der Westhuizen, Bob Skinstad (capt), A J Venter, Corne Krige, Mark Andrews, Victor Matfield, Willie Meyer, John Smit, Ollie le Roux.