De Villiers near to solving team selection riddle

Peter de Villiers, the South Africa coach, sees the second Test against Italy tomorrow as the final piece of the puzzle ahead of the Springboks' defence of the Tri-Nations title. De Villiers has made five changes and two positional switches to his team for the match in East London, on South Africa's south coast, which is the Boks' last game before their Tri-Nations campaign kicks off on July 10. Following a 29-13 win over the Italians last weekend, De Villiers said he was closer to knowing his best combination after a period of early-season rotation.

"This week is the last of four weeks that we have had to prepare and at this stage, I am 75 per cent sure on who will go on the Tri-Nations tour," De Villiers said. "This is the last piece of the puzzle, which we hope will fall into place for us to be ready." Meanwhile, New Zealand are sweating on the fitness of Dan Carter ahead of tomorrow's second Test with Wales and have drafted in Luke McAlister as cover. McAlister was brought in as a precaution should Carter's thigh strain flare up

Sonny Bill Williams, the rugby league convert, has chosen Canterbury, the New Zealand province, as a launching pad for his bid to break into the All Blacks squad for the 2011 World Cup. The 24-year-old, who signed a New Zealand Rugby Union contract this month after two years in France with Toulon, will play in the provincial competition starting next month before joining Super rugby side the Canterbury Crusaders next year.

"I made my decision to join Canterbury and the Crusaders because that's where I think I will best develop as a rugby player," Williams said. * Agencies