Appleton takes over the captaincy from Nicolas Martins, who was part of the match-day squad that beat Namibia by 37-22.

Besides the responsibility of leading the side,  Appleton  will be saddled with the task of keeping his massive South African counterpart Andre Esterhuizen  in the number 12 jersey.

Martins is replaced on the side of the scrum by Diego Pinheiro, with Vasco Baptista taking over from Joao Granate at No 8. At lock, Nicolas Fernandes replaces Antonio Rebelo Andrade, who moves to the bench.

Mannix has made a few tweaks to the backline too, with Joris Moura starting at flyhalf and Simao Bento at fullback, while Manuel Cardoso Pinto will run out at wing after donning the No 15 jersey last week.

While the Springboks are certainly testing their depth against Os Lobos, this outfit still boasts eight Rugby World Cup winners in the starting line-up, with another on the bench in Trevor Nyakane, as well as some of the brightest young talents in the republic.

Many of these players will be hellbent on taking their opportunity with both hands, particularly with the Rugby Championship fast approaching. Still, Portugal proved that they are no pushovers during the Rugby World Cup, and while they have not yet risen to the same level as the performance that secured a sensational win over Fiji, they will be keen to remind the rugby world just what they are capable of.

This all promises to produce a fantastic celebration of rugby after the ‘Tier One’ nations agreed to host fixtures against ‘Tier Two’ opponents in the years after a World Cup.

Appleton is fully aware of the huge challenge that awaits then at the Toyota Stadium on Saturday at 17:00.

“It’s massive, playing against double World Champions,” Appleton said in an interview with Rugby365.

“It’s so big for us as a developing union. For some of us players, we are playing against guys that we are used to seeing on the television.

“They are the guys that influence our game style and the way we want to play.

“You don’t want to put them on a pedestal, as we are conscious that we want to show the world that we are taking this very seriously.

“And we want to shock the world every time we step onto the pitch.

“We want to shock the world. Of course, I am not saying that we will beat them,” Appleton said earnestly.

Portugal team:
15 Simao Bento
14 Manuel Cardoso Pinto
13 Jose Lima
12 Tomas Appleton (captain)
11 Rodrigo Marta
10 Joris Moura
9 Hugo Camacho

8 Vasco Baptista
7 Diego Pinheiro
6 Jose Maderia
5 Duarte Torgal
4 Nicolas Fernandes
3 Diogo Hasse Ferreira
2 Luka Begic
1 Francisco Fernandes

Replacements:
16 David Costa
17 Pedro Vicente
18 Abel Cunha
19 Antionio R. Andrade
20 Andre Cunha
21 Pedro Lucas
22 Domingos Cabral
23 Jose P. Santos