“It all depends who is in that front line. If there is space there we’ll take it. If there isn’t we might put it back in the corner,” he said.

South Africa has surprised some by its willingness to keep the ball in hand so far this tournament.

It has the fourth highest try-count with 21. But in the tighter pool games, the defending champions resorted to their usual form, building pressure by kicking for territory or kicking up-and-unders in an attempt to force mistakes from the opponent’s back three. They are unlikely to deviate from that now that their place in the Cup is on the line.

Wales, which plays Ireland in Wellington on Saturday, has been encouraged by its coach Warren Gatland to play the game with plenty of speed and intensity. With Rhys Priestland dictating the game from flyhalf and the teenager George North in sizzling form on the wing, Gatland is confident the players will not go into their shells.

“What’s been great about this World Cup is we’ve got a lot of youngsters with no fear factor,” he said.

“We’ve talked about times we want to be smart, we’ve got to play territory, we’ve got to play weather conditions, but if you feel there’s an opportunity to move and play, we want to encourage that.”

Ireland has mixed its game up well. It was tactically smart and physically dominating in its victory over Australia and showed against Italy an ability to pick apart defenses as well. But for captain Brian O’Driscoll, who is playing his final World Cup, the key is building pressure by whatever means possible.

“You have to do what gets you across the line, what wins you games. I think it’s about pressure rugby,” he said.