Scotland v South Africa: Autumn Nations Series rugby union – live

Scotland looking to make history against world champions

Gregor Townsend's men face the Springboks at Murrayfield on Saturday

Scotland will be looking to make history when they take on world champions South Africa in the Autumn Nations Series at Murrayfield on Saturday.

The Scots have never beaten the Springboks in a Test match, but they will be confident of causing an upset after a morale-boosting win over Australia last weekend.

Gregor Townsend's men will be without a number of key players, including captain Stuart Hogg and fly-half Finn Russell, but they will be buoyed by the return of Duhan van der Merwe.

South Africa will be looking to bounce back from their defeat to Ireland last weekend, and they will be boosted by the return of a number of their star players, including captain Siya Kolisi and scrum-half Faf de Klerk.

The match is expected to be a close encounter, and it could go either way. Scotland will be looking to play their expansive game, while South Africa will be looking to use their power and physicality to grind down the Scots.

The match will be televised live on Sky Sports, and kick-off is at 14:15 GMT.

Team news

**Scotland** * Stuart Hogg (knee) and Finn Russell (ankle) are both ruled out of the match. * Duhan van der Merwe returns to the side after missing the win over Australia. * Chris Harris starts at fly-half, with Blair Kinghorn moving to full-back. **South Africa** * Siya Kolisi returns to captain the side after missing the defeat to Ireland. * Faf de Klerk also returns at scrum-half. * Eben Etzebeth and Lood de Jager are both named in the second row.

Key battlegrounds

**The scrum** * Scotland have a strong scrum, but they will be up against one of the best in the world in South Africa. * The battle in the scrum could be key to the outcome of the match. **The breakdown** * South Africa are renowned for their physicality at the breakdown, and they will be looking to slow down Scotland's ball. * Scotland will need to be accurate and clinical at the breakdown if they are to win the match. **The backline** * Scotland have a number of dangerous attacking players in their backline, including Duhan van der Merwe and Darcy Graham. * South Africa have a strong defence, but they will need to be at their best to stop Scotland's attacking threats.

Prediction

* Scotland will be looking to make history against South Africa, but they will face a tough challenge against the world champions. * South Africa will be looking to bounce back from their defeat to Ireland, and they will be confident of beating Scotland. * The match is expected to be a close encounter, but South Africa are likely to be too strong for Scotland.