Rugby Union: England Left With Little But a Prayer on the Wing

At this rate, Tony Blair, who is due to fly into South Africa tomorrow, could yet become the first British prime minister to play international rugby. England's desperate run of bad luck with illness and injury shows little sign of easing and Jason Robinson's swollen right knee is threatening to leave the tourists without their leader in Saturday's final Test.

Robinson was unable to do any training yesterday, still suffering from the lingering after-effects of a blow received during the 58-10 first-Test loss to the Springboks in Bloemfontein. He still hopes to be fit for the weekend - "I should be playing" - but the head coach, Brian Ashton, was non-committal when asked whether his captain would be ready to play. Ashton's plans have already been so badly disrupted he probably feels it unwise to tempt fate.

As it is, the squad is running short of wingers following the decision to put Dave Strettle on an early flight home to recuperate from the severe vomiting bug that led to him being admitted to hospital in Johannesburg last week. With Iain Balshaw's tour also over and another wing candidate, James Simpson-Daniel, still too queasy to train properly, Robinson's fitness is a big issue. Even if the fluid on his knee drains away satisfactorily, there is every prospect of a place in the match-day 22 for Saracens' Dan Scarbrough, who flew in from the UK as emergency cover last Friday. With Mark Cueto unfit to tour and Ben Cohen withdrawing for family reasons, there are few other available options.

The midfield outlook is not much better, with Andy Farrell looking ominously pale and unwell during a short training appearance at Zwartkop High School in Centurion. While Jonny Wilkinson managed to take part, he did so clad in a white bib with a red cross on it, the squad's medical advisers having ruled him out of contact situations following last Saturday's bruising encounter with the Boks. In the event of Robinson being ruled out, Ashton would appear to have a straight captaincy choice between Wilkinson and the Worcester flanker Pat Sanderson.

England are meant to name a team today, 24 hours later than scheduled, but are not guaranteeing anything. With at least one player reportedly not having eaten for five days, the situation remains fluid in every sense.

South Africa also have worries about the make-up of their team after six players - Danie Rossouw, Deon Carstens, Ashwin Willemse, BJ Botha, Wynand Olivier and Waylon Murray - had to be isolated from the rest of the squad after coming down with flu. The Boks' manager, Zola Yeye, said it was "a precaution but at the moment it is not serious".

Even if South Africa are at full strength Robinson believes England will be more competitive at Loftus Versfeld than they were in the first Test. "We think we can turn it round and if we do, the tour will have been a success," he said.

Robinson also rejected suggestions that another bashing could stunt the development of several younger players. "It's good preparation for the World Cup," he said. "I see failure as part of success.

"You've got to go through times when it's not going right and work hard to turn it around. That's what breeds character. There was a lot of frustration after the game but Saturday can't come quick enough. I'm not just going to go through the usual spiel ... we truly believe we can win this game."