The pressure is squarely on the Springboks when they face up to France in the second and decisive Test at Durban's Absa Stadium on Saturday. Another defeat will set the alarm bells ringing and it could lead to huge embarrassment for coach Harry Viljoen.

Viljoen didn't have the best of debuts at home when his charges looked out of their depth against the French at Ellis Park last week, failing miserably en route to a shock 32-23 defeat. The coach this week made five changes and a positional switch in an effort to find the right blend to put South African rugby back on the right path.

He called for patience as his team find their feet in trying to cope with a new game plan and the new ideas provided by the Australian specialist coaches. However, the harsh reality of South African rugby is that the supporters don't tolerate losers, especially not against an inexperienced and below strength French side.

On Saturday the Springboks must produce. That is the bottom line. Nothing but a convincing win will suffice, otherwise the cries for the head of the coach will be deafening.

Fortunately for Viljoen history has shown that the Springboks are at their best when they are wounded. As new Springbok loosehead prop Ollie le Roux so succinctly phrased it this week: the Bok pride has been dented and now it's time for revenge.

"We do not like the fact that they outmuscled us. We were playing a bit too far away from our forwards instead of getting the ball in front of us. The whole team are embarrassed. We have been down all week because our performance was pathetic. We really want to lift our game. And there is a lot of magic in this team," the Natal star said.

Whether that is enough to bounce back like some of their predecessors did after losing a Test remains to be seen.

In 1994 the Springboks were comprehensively beaten 32-15 by Will Carling's England in Pretoria, just to avenge the defeat handsomely by 27-9 at Newlands the following week.

In 1996 they beat the All Blacks at Ellis Park after losing the first two Tests. And in 1997 the Boks inflicted a record defeat on the Wallabies at Loftus Versfeld in Pretoria after suffering a record defeat to the All Blacks in Auckland and losing a series to the British and Irish Lions.

But now the class of 2001 must show they have what it takes to get up from a massive blow on the chin.

In stark contrast the French will experience no pressure at all. They can achieve a third series win on South African soil, but even to leave for New Zealand with a series draw will be viewed as a victory in itself by the French, who stated that they were here to build for the 2003 World Cup and regard any win as a bonus.

The Tricolors' confidence is sky-high and coach Bernard Laporte said earlier this week that he was preparing his men for an all-out physical onslaught from a team he knows will be out for revenge. "The first 15 minutes will be really hard and we are expecting it to be a 'noble' war," he said.

"We have to be ready for everything the Springboks throw at us. We have to front up and we have to make our presence felt from the start. If we don't it could mean big problems for us. The South Africans will be looking at the game as a revenge match and will want to stamp their physical superiority from the outset."

But don't expect the French to change the tactics that brought them success in Johannesburg. Apart from improving the kick-offs, which was one area where his team battled, Laporte said the French had put in a lot of work this week on figuring out ways to retain their lineout superiority.

"Against both the Springboks this Saturday and against the All Blacks the following week we intend to use the lineouts to destabilise the opposition. If you do not get good ball, you cannot control the game," he said.

First-phase possession is going to be crucial to a victory. Last week the Springboks struggled in the scrums and lineouts and if they cannot get those phases right, another gloomy Saturday awaits South African supporters.

But with the surprise element gone for the French and the elongated lineout champion Albert van den Berg back in the starting XV, that is highly unlikely to happen again.

Teams for Ellis Park:

South Africa: Thinus Delport, Breyton Paulse, Robbie Fleck, De Wet Barry, Dean Hall, Butch James, Joost van der Westhuizen, André Vos (capt), Corné Krige, Rassie Erasmus, Mark Andrews, Albert van den Berg, Willie Meyer, John Smit, Ollie le Roux. Substitutes: Robbie Kempson, Etienne Fynn, Johan Ackermann, Bob Skinstad, Neil de Kock, Percy Montgomery, Conrad Jantjes.

France: Nicolas Jeanjean, David Bory, Yannick Jauzion, Stéphane Glas, Christophe Dominici, Gérald Merceron, Fabien Galthié (capt), Patrick Tabacco, Olivier Magne, Sébastien Chabal, Oliver Brouzet, David Auradou, Pieter de Villiers, Raphaël Ibañez, Jean Jacques Crenca. Substitutes: Olivier Azam, Christian Califano, Lionel Nallet, Elvis Vermeulen, Pierre Mignoni, David Skrela, Pepito Elhorga.

Referee: Chris White (England).

Kick-off: 17:00.