Schalk Burger has recovered from the knee injury he suffered in the Super 14 and is available for Springbok selection against Italy at Newlands on Saturday - leaving Bok coach Peter de Villiers with a straight choice between the World Cup-winning fetcher or Luke Watson in the No 6 jersey.
South Africa kick off their Tri-Nations campaign against the All Blacks in Wellington in three weeks, so Saturday represents a last chance for De Villiers to pick his best available XV and fine tune his combinations in live combat.
The only option available to De Villiers if he wants to accommodate both Burger and Watson, would be to play the latter at No 8 and retain the former IRB Player of the Year on the openside flank.
This is just one of the many selection conundrums confronting De Villiers on Monday as he prepares to choose a side which, he suggested after the 37-21 series-clinching win over Wales at Loftus on Saturday, could be experimental.
But frankly, after back-to-back wins against Wales and with only one game remaining before the start of the Tri-Nations, De Villiers has to start settling his first-choice line-up.
This means he will have to decide between Tonderai Chavanga and JP Pietersen on the right wing and Francois Steyn and Adrian Jacobs at centre.
Ricky Januarie's form at Loftus gives him the inside lane on retaining the scrumhalf berth, and BJ Botha and Tendai Mtawarira are almost certain to retain the No 1 and No 3 jerseys after their solid scrummaging performance.
De Villiers is set to announce his team on Thursday, with a big call to make between Burger and Watson, who was loathed by Jake White, but is a favourite of the new coach.
Watson has emerged as one of the most influential players in De Villiers' squad and is even being mentioned as a de facto captain of sorts.
However Burger, who brings a physical edge to any pack, and is respected throughout the world for his work-rate and competitiveness, has to be the first-choice No 6 due to his experience and accomplishments.
Watson, Brian Mujati and De Villiers were the three people in the Bok squad who voted for the coaches not to wear the green-and-gold jacket, swopping them for blue blazers and blue and white striped ties instead.
However, this decision is believed not to have been well received by some players in the squad, who hold a high value for traditional Springbok rituals that they believe should be retained.
Against Wales on Saturday the Springboks looked confused as to what game-plan they intend adopting under De Villiers as they grapple with the pragmatic, risk-averse style that won them the World Cup under White and the "entertaining", enterprising approach De Villiers appears to be encouraging.
It's a team that appears to be teething with transformation as they enter a new, uncertain era, but one that will have to find its feet fast and settle on a plan and philosophy if they hope to be competitive in the Tri-Nations.
On Saturday De Villiers will be up against a colossus of a coach in Nick Mallett, the man he worked under briefly as an assistant in the Springbok squad 10 years ago. Nevertheless, it is an Italian team which is likely to be little more than cannon-fodder.
When Mallett was the Bok coach in 1999, South Africa beat Italy 101-0 in Durban, then 60-14 in Port Elizabeth.
That was the last time both countries met on a rugby field in South Africa. Since then Six Nations experience has made the Azzurri more formidable, but over a dozen first-choice players are missing from this tour and a country like Italy does not have great rugby depth.
Captain Sergio Parisse and first-choice centres Mirco Bergamasco and Gonzalo Canale are playing French championship matches this weekend and props Salvatore Perugini and Andrea Lo Cicero, will be doing battle for Toulouse and Racing Metro Paris respectively.
At the same time, Leicester's Martin Castrogiovanni is still recovering from a back injury.
"Seven (top) props are missing," said Mallett last week. "How many teams in the world can afford to lose that many, especially when the front-row is our strength?"
Indeed. Italy are heading for a hiding in a match that could resemble the last time the Boks played in Cape Town, when they thrashed Namibia in their World Cup warm-up game last year.