Roy Winters believes England must "fight to the death" in Test match rugby's critical breakdown area when they face South Africa at Loftus Versfeld tomorrow.

England's failure to keep possession in contact cost them dear last weekend as the Springboks posted a record 58-10 victory.

Given the tourists' continuing health problems - Andy Farrell, James Simpson-Daniel, Mike Brown and Andy Hazell are all out of contention, alongside Iain Balshaw, Nick Wood and David Strettle - they will do well to avoid a repeat performance, or worse.

Head coach Brian Ashton will not announce his starting line-up until later today, but 31-year-old Bristol lock Winters, Bath prop Matt Stevens and Saracens back-row forward Ben Skirving are all expected to start.

England conceded seven tries to the Springboks in Bloemfontein, yet possibly five of those could be linked to spilling possession.

Winters, who made his Test debut at Vodacom Park, said: ``South Africa areobviously very physical at the breakdown, so our actual presentation of the ball has got to be up to scratch and then we have got to stop the turnovers that killed us last Saturday.

``You tend to get the occasional big pack in the Guinness Premiership that exerts a similar sort of pressure, but the difference I've noticed is that it is there for 80 minutes.

``It doesn't come in spurts, it is just there constantly, and every breakdown you have to fight to the death.

``You look at four or five tries we conceded, and they were from our own mistakes. If we do make a mistake, we've got to react into a defensive modestraight away and work hard.

``Looking at those tries, they were very straight forward run-ins. In my eyes,South Africa didn't have to work very hard for them.

``Whereas you can get away with it for a split second in the Premiership,reacting and getting up off the floor, if you walk for those couple of seconds as you might in a Premiership game, then you are going to get punished, and that happened on a few occasions.''

Uncapped Bath full-back Nick Abendanon and London Irish rookie Topsy Ojo have both joined the squad as cover, and Abendanon looks likely to feature in a match-day 22 that should also see Saracens' Dan Scarborough making a first Test appearance since 2003.

Stevens, meanwhile, is set to line up against the country of his birth when England head into another damage-limitation exercise that will conclude an ill-fated and ludicrously-planned trip.

The Durban-born prop might have been a Springbok by now had he not chosen to take up an English qualification made available through his paternal grandfather.

But the second Test - by Stevens' admission ``probably the biggest game I have ever been involved in'' - also represents a significant personal triumph.

The 24-year-old underwent a shoulder reconstruction last year, requiring two operations amid genuine fears he might not play again.

He said: ``Being out injured is a tough time for any rugby player.

``Not playing again definitely went through my head and probably the surgeon's head as well. But after the second operation, it all seemed to be good and I went through some excellent rehabilitation with the Bath and England physios.

``It is a huge game for me, probably the biggest game I have ever been involved in. Emotionally, I think I am ready for this game, and I have been since I made the choice to play for England.''