Suggestions that South Africa's Test against Argentina is merely a stepping stone before the All Blacks series have been firmly rejected by Springbok assistant coach Deon Davids.
Rassie Erasmus has named a 44-man squad, with 18 players remaining in South Africa to continue preparations for the two-Test series against New Zealand. Saturday's clash in Buenos Aires is expected to provide valuable game time for a host of returning stars, including captain Siya Kolisi, locks Eben Etzebeth and Lood de Jager, flyhalf Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu and scrumhalf Morne van den Berg.
The contrast between the two nations' schedules has fuelled perceptions of a warm-up fixture. South Africa will play six Tests during this international window, allowing Erasmus to rotate his squad and carefully manage player workloads. Argentina, by comparison, have only three fixtures, leaving Felipe Contepomi with fewer opportunities to develop combinations. Los Pumas have also named a squad featuring 10 uncapped players, highlighting the different stages both teams find themselves in.
But Davids insisted none of that changes the Springboks' mindset. "We're very clear about what we want to achieve," Davids said. "We understand that coming to Argentina, and especially to Buenos Aires, has never been easy. While we're building our game, it's important that we improve in the areas where we want to improve, but it's another Test match. Our aim will always be to be at our best and to play Test match rugby."