Peter De Villiers refuses to push panic button after Murrayfield defeat

South Africa coach Peter de Villiers said there was no need to panic after last week's defeat to Scotland and made just two changes to face England at Twickenham on Saturday.

Scrum-half Ruan Pienaar and No 8 Pierre Spies return to the starting line-up in what, from the remnants of the injury and suspension-ravaged squad, is probably his strongest XV.

The Springboks' Grand Slam hopes were washed away in the Edinburgh rain as Scotland secured a deserved 21-17 victory and they desperately want to avoid another setback in what the coach considers the toughest Test of the tour. "There is no panic," said De Villiers. "We looked at all the options but we would be stupid not to go with the tried and tested. This team has all the ability we need but we have to execute more accurately than we did against Scotland.

"We spent a lot of time studying that game and the one thing we didn't do well was our execution. We stuck to our plan and will do on Saturday and hope to convert all our efforts into points." South Africa last lost to England in 2006, winning the six meetings since then, including the 2007 World Cup final. However, the hosts are a much-improved side this year and De Villiers is bracing himself.

"England have made good progress since they started their tour to Australia this year and will be full of confidence," he said.

"A full Twickenham will ensure that this is the toughest Test of the tour for us. They are now a force again and it's a hell of a worry, especially with the World Cup so close, that they are gelling as a team.

"They are very direct when they go forward and are definitely the best scrummaging side in the world." Captain Victor Matfield will be facing England for the ninth time and has seen both sides of the coin.

"When I first played I think we lost five in a row against them then that turned round and we've had a good period," said the lock. "They are playing a great style of rugby now - they have width but they run very hard. In a way it's much the same style as in 2003, keeping the forwards in the channels."

Matfield said the Scotland defeat had been analysed and the lessons learned would be on show on Saturday, where cold weather and even snow could be on the menu. "We've had a good few days and taken the lessons," he said. "This is a great chance for us to redeem ourselves."

England, fresh from wins over Australia and Samoa, will name their team tomorrow.

South Africa team: Z Kirchner (Blue Bulls); G Aplon (Western Province), F Steyn (Racing Metro), J de Villiers (Western Province), L Mvovo (Sharks); M Steyn (Blue Bulls), R Pienaar (Ulster); T Mtawarira (Sharks), B du Plessis (Sharks), J du Plessis (Sharks), B Botha (Blue Bulls), V Matfield (Blue Bulls, capt), D Stegmann (Blue Bulls), J Smith (Cheetahs), P Spies (Blue Bulls). Subs: A Strauss (Cheetahs), CJ van der Linde (Cheetahs), F van der Merwe (Blue Bulls), W Alberts (Sharks), F Hougaard (Blue Bulls), P Lambie (Sharks), A Jacobs (Sharks).