While it was bitterly cold in the English capital early in the week, a winter storm hit on Wednesday with the Boks' training session taking place in driving rain aided by a howling wind.

Temperatures also dropped considerably, prompting team management to order 50 coffees to go at the end of the session. The players enjoyed the hot drinks on the bus back to the hotel - it certainly made up for getting drenched on the training field!

The Boks had a good week in London despite a couple of players sitting out training early in the week because of niggles or sniffles as they prepared for the last test of a very long season.

Apart from the weather and the injury niggles, there was good news after Eben Etzebeth was acquitted at a hearing, while JP Pietersen was included in an unchanged 15 to face England on Saturday. The veteran winger will have to pass a fitness test by Friday though.

"What is important this week is that we get the minds ready even if the bodies aren't," said Bok coach Heyneke Meyer.

"It's amazing what the mind can do, and the players also know that I am a coach who doesn't like excuses. So they are just going to have to show mental toughness and dig deep, and I'm sure they will."

Jean de Villiers will become the fifth most capped Springbok of all time on Saturday. The Bok captain has been a star this year, in what was quite a challenging season for the South Africans.