Springboks will provide true benchmarks to growing Scots

“We were building up our match after seeing how quickly they got into their game at the weekend (45-21 win over England) and we looked at the first half and they came out like they’ve been playing for the last few months.

“They’re a team that knows their identity. I think everyone in world rugby knows their identity and they’re very good at what they do. It’s a great challenge, a great marker of where we are and where we need to go following this game.”

As Scotland did in their impressive win in Cordoba, the Springboks ran in seven tries last weekend as they brushed aside England at Ellis Park to open their Nations Championship campaign in ominous fashion.

As he often does, head coach Rassie Erasmus named his squad earlier in the week, making 10 changes to the side rooting for the English.

For most international teams, this would equate to a weak team, but even the absence of world stars such as Siya Kolisi, Eben Etzebeth, Cheslin Kolbe and Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, the Springboks’ unrivaled squad depth means they are still fielding a strong side.

“I think they change their teams regularly,” Townsend said. “They have a lot of depth.

“Often they change packs during games and I imagine this team or close to this team have been training together for the last two or three weeks.

“They will be fresh, they will be ready to go and they will want to build on the very good performance against England.”

Finn Russell missed the win against Argentina after returning from a calf injury, but Townsend says the Bath fly-half is ready to face the box, despite prop Elliott Miller-Mills being ruled out with a similar injury against the Pumas last weekend.

The display in Cordoba showed Scotland at their best, with some tries producing attacking play of the highest order.

It evoked memories of the remarkable Six Nations win over France in March, when the Scots built Grand Slam favorites to the tune of 50 points at Murrayfield.

An encouraging Six Nations and a very promising start to the Nations Championship suggest the Scots are on an upward curve and Townsend believes the upswing can be traced back to November’s Test disappointment.

“I think we’ve obviously learned from the two good performances that didn’t lead to wins, New Zealand and Argentina,” Townsend said.

“We learned from the defeat in Dublin (to Ireland in the Six Nations), but I was really pleased with the way the players came together at the weekend, because we were tested.

“We were tested at the start of the first half, twice at the start of the second half, but then when we tried and picked up a yellow card. It could have been a difficult time for us, but the players were outstanding after that.

“These are the moments in the game that you either go on the back foot and absorb and let the opponent dictate the conditions to you, or you go forward and you find solutions. The players are doing that more and more, which is really pleasing.

“This is our chance to learn and be a better team after this weekend.”