Almost immediately after his side had squeezed themselves into the World Rugby Classic Final, Wallaby coach Bob Dwyer began his recruitment campaign.

Under Classic rules, players from teams that have been defeated by another are then allowed to play for their previous opponents in emergencies ? and the Australians are certainly going through one of those at the moment.

Playing in their first Classic for 11 years, the Aussies were not quite prepared for the physical nature of modern competition and were decimated with injuries after their opening game against the USA.

In the semi-final victory over Argentina ? courtesy of a dramatic fightback in the final 15 minutes ? such was the state of their wounded bench that not only were wingers joining the back row, an American even needed to be drafted in.

And when the ?Aussies? run out against South Africa in the Classic climax today, there will be both Americans and Argentinians among their ranks.

?It is the only way we can do it,? said Dwyer, a former World Cup winner, with the ink still fresh on his pad after writing down the names of potential Pumas who could make final appearances despite their team?s 19-14 defeat on Remembrance Day.

?In the rules it says you can do it and it is the only way we are going to get a team out for the final. To be honest, it is a bit of a miracle we got through the semis with what we had.

?Half the lads on the bench shouldn?t have been there and others were being played in completely different positions.

?A victory like that is a real feather in our caps.?

And the Wallaby side will be even further depleted with captain Phil Kearns and winger Viliame Ofahengaue having to fly home early due to sickness in their respective families.

The loss of two of their biggest names makes the odds against an Aussie victory on their return to Classic competition all the more overwhelming.

?It is going to be tough,? continued Dwyer, who admitted he didn?t care if his South American recruits could even speak English, as long as ?they could play decent rugby?.

?The South Africans have looked real good all the way through and we are just hoping to put in the best performance we can with what we have.?

There is a distinct possibility of today?s game turning into a rout, with betting men predicting 100-points wins for the Springboks ? easily the strongest side of the tournament courtesy of a whole host of recently retired stars.

Joost van der Westhuizen is looking at his irrepressible best while wingers Pieter Rossouw and Jan Harm van Wyk ? scorers of six tries between them in the opening two games ? are showing a turn of speed that few, if any, in the Classic can match.

But coach Francois Pienaar is refusing to get carried away about his side?s chances.

?I have played in plenty of finals in my time and one thing about them is that they are all unpredictable,? said Pienaar, after witnessing a much less ill-tempered affair than his side?s tempestuous victory over France on Wednesday.

?I don?t think we are clear favourites by any means. They are a good side with some good players and I think it will be a close game.

?We have some injury concerns of our own, so let?s not make any predictions and just wait and see.?

The plate final will see two former winners of the main event competing for a lesser crown.

Both New Zealand and the Barbarians put in strong semi-final performances after their losses in the opening round against the Springboks and the Pumas respectively.

Their clash today should be an interesting encounter with the British side favourites to triumph with their younger and fitter side.

Meanwhile, the British Lionesses take on the USA Golden Eagles in a women?s international clash that precedes the main final.