Centurion: England coach Duncan Fletcher is not often moved to delivering such categorical statements that his charges are today facing an combined opposition which should provide the tourists with their toughest ``warm up'' game of the tour.

He even threw in the thought that the powerful combined Northerns/Gauteng XI to play the England XI at Centurion over the next four days was such that the game might even be considered as ``the sixth Test on this tour''.

Fletcher might now consider revising that comments although the locals have included five Test players in the side after the United Cricket Board late yesterday ordered the removal of Rudi Bryson and replaced him with Walter Masimula.

This was after a strong objection was lodged at the all white composition of the combined side after Bryson, brought in as a replacement for the injured David Townsend at noon yesterday, found himself sidelined for the SuperSport Park game five hours later.

It was the latest, if possibly not the last, of what has been from the start a botched selection job with the team, sanctioned last Saturday by the UCB, appearing in British newspapers last Sunday ahead of the South African announcement.

Problems first arose when the UCB, in their wisdom, decided last Friday they wanted to field the strongest side possible in the Northerns/Gauteng XI. The argument was the national selectors wanted to have a further look at players such as Adam Bacher, Daryll Cullinan, David Terbrugge, Greg Smith and Steve Elworthy prior to selection for the first Test side of the series on Sunday.

Apart from disrupting the well-organised South African A side by withdrawing Nic Pothas, Neil McKenzie and Terbrugge, the UCB pushed aside the interests of the provincial selectors to the extent that on Tuesday a Gauteng selector made it known he was ``upset and disappointed at the way the side has been selected''.

Matsemi Noyka had informed the UCB and the Gauteng Cricket Board of his decision not ``to support the team in any way''.

He said the all white selection was a ``affront to transformation policy preached by the UCB''.

Yet UCB insiders said earlier this week that the side had been approved at the highest level.

As it is Peter Kirsten, the Northerns coach, who was supposed to help prepare the side was unaware until Monday morning that it had already been selected.

Rumours that the national selectors had hand in selecting the side were at first denied but late yesterday it emerged they had ``a hand in allowing the strongest team possible'' to play the tourists.

The former Test batsman has declined to comment on what has been little more than administrative interference in team selection process. There had also been a ``gentleman?s agreement'' between the neighbouring unions that Northerns would be allowed to field six players for this game as it was being played in Centurion. Gauteng had six players when they combined with Northerns for the Wanderers game late last month against Sri Lanka A.      The England coach, Fletcher, felt the pitch would be hard and fast and help the quick bowlers while Clive Eksteen, the Combined XI?s captain indicated that he would have the Northerns duo of Test cap Elworthy and left-armer Greg Smith share the new ball.

Fletcher admitted the side was almost as strong as a Test side but was confident that the England batsmen would get used to the pace of what he thought would become a very fast surface. While Darren Gough and Andrew Caddick are expected to  play, the left-armer Alan Mullally is likely to be rested for the Test now seven days away.

As it is England rocked up to the nets at Centurion yesterday with only two batsmen in Nasser Hussain and Alec Stewart while the bowlers were given a full work out although Darren Gough was given the day off.

The teams:

Northerns/Gauteng XI: Sven Koenig, Adam Bacher, Neil McKenzie, Daryll Cullinan, Martin van Jaarsveld, Nic Pothas, Steve Elworthy, Clive Eksteen (capt), Greg Smith, David Terbrugge, Walter Masimula.

England XI (possibly from): Mike Atherton, Mark Butcher, Alec Stewart, Nasser Hussain (capt), Gavin Hamilton, Michael Vaughn, Andrew Flintoff, Darren Maddy, Alex Tudor, Darren Gough, Andrew Caddick, Chris Silverwood, Phil Tufnell.

Umpires: David Orchard and Wilf Diedricks;

Third umpire: Danny Becker.

Hours of play: 10.30-12.30pm; 1.10-3.10pm, 3.30-5.30pm

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