Under an air of pageantry on a night that threatened to turn stormy in Durban, 30 Springboks were selected to represent their country in England for the World Cup.
It was a squad of 31, but they are not all Springboks. The biggest surprise was the selection of uncapped Rudy Paige, who was brought in as the third halfback at the expense of Cobus Reinach.
Reinach was not the only loser on the night. Marcell Coetzee can feel very hard done by after he was left out despite his impressive performances for coach Heyneke Meyer, both this year and previously. Siya Kolisi was selected as the additional openside cover, ahead of both Coetzee and Heinrich Brussow.
It is confusing to understand why players such as Coetzee and Reinach were omitted, after playing such big parts in 2015, for two players who have featured for less than 40 minutes between them. Meyer explained his omission of the pair as based on recent injuries. Reinach suffered a fractured hand in Super Rugby and Coetzee picked up a knee injury in the Rugby Championship.
"Marcell is a guy I have always rated highly. Unfortunately, at this stage he is still injured," Meyer told media in Durban.
