New Springbok coach Harry Viljoen has pinpointed South African rugby's shortcomings and expressed concern at how far the game in this country has fallen behind that of traditional rivals Australia and New Zealand.

Viljoen and his 40-man squad leave for Argentina, the UK and Ireland on Tuesday, knowing that a stern test awaits them. He has already asked for 10 months to get a team of his own together, but failure on the end-of-year tour will not go down well with the unforgiving SA public.

The former Western Province, Natal and Transvaal coach cited the South Africans' lack of patience and poor ball-carrying skills as the main worries. "I have analysed our shortcomings and the main thing is that once we go beyond the third phase, we don't know what to do," he said at a breakfast function in Sandton.

"Of the three Sanzar countries, we are the least efficient from fourth phase. Why are Australia, with only about 75 players to choose from, world champions? The reason is that Australian sides are just so much more patient in building phases and much more effective beyond the third phase.

"Statistics have shown that the Springboks were outstanding in the primary phases, but not very impressive after the third phase," he said.

Those statistics show that South Africa are last by a long way when it comes to crossing the gain line from fourth phase. The All Blacks are way in front with 71 per cent, while the Wallabies have 51 per cent. The Springboks bring up the rear with 29 per cent.

From first phase, Andre Vos's men do better, crossing the advantage line 57 per cent of the time, although New Zealand (70) and Australia (71) are still in front. They also trail the passes per movement statistic with 1.41, while the All Blacks have 1.57 and Australia 1.47.

Another shortcoming is the players' inability to break down opposition defences. He again used the Currie Cup final between Western Province and Natal as an example, saying the latter's lack of penetration with the bulk of the possession was worrying.

"It's a big concern that Natal had about 70 per cent possession and didn't seem to know what to do with it. I have a lot of Natal players in my squad. If a team like the ACT Brumbies had that much possession, they would have managed to put 50 or 60 points on the board.

"I have identified where we have gone wrong. Defences are so specialised now and it's impossible to run through walls. It all starts with patience," he said.

Viljoen again backed his decision to include Percy Montgomery at flyhalf, saying the Province fullback is vital to his ball-in-hand approach. "To play that kind of game, you need your flyhalf to be a decision-maker. He must have good hands and must also be a ball carrier. Who else in South Africa has those capabilities? If I don't try Percy, I will never know."

The coach hinted he may start with the silver-haired flyer at No 10 against Argentina in the first Test. "I'll make that decision after a week, once we've done all the drills. Gaffie du Toit is not ready to play Test rugby at flyhalf, so we intend to give Montgomery an intensive 10-day training drill and take it from there," he said.

The Springboks leave for Argentina with two injury worries. Japie Mulder is still recovering from his rib injury and will only be available for the Test against Ireland on November 19, while Toks van der Linde has a sore neck.