Springboks set to intimidate Wallabies through the forwards after hosts lose James Horwill THE wounded Wallabies pack will be targeted by a hammering South African game plan intent on magnifying the loss of talismanic leader James Horwill into an upset. Going into Saturday night's must-win Test at Suncorp Stadium without the team's most authoritative forward fractures the Wallabies far more than coach Ewen McKenzie would admit on Thursday. Horwill is the pack's voice of calm and inspiration in the tight moments and there will be plenty of those now the Springboks are salivating over this chance to win in Brisbane for the first time since 1971. Will Genia will be as sharp a captain as ever but pack leadership looks short. It's needed in those little composure moments where the Wallabies are tripping up like losing costly back-to-back lineouts as soon as top target Ben Mowen was replaced against the All Blacks in Wellington. It's how the Wallabies bounce back after the inevitable bad scrum so it's a one-off not a trend or keep belief to win when behind on the scoreboard for 30 minutes. The Wallabies have lost top locks before but there has always been a starchy Dan Vickerman or Nathan Sharpe to still call the shots with conviction over the past decade. Horwill's hamstring twinge, when he fell awkwardly from a lineout at Tuesday's training, thrusts Kane Douglas (10 Tests) into a lock pairing with Rob Simmons (28). Both are still to produce commanding performances at Test level which is what it will take to stall the abrasive Bismarck du Plessis, Francois Louw and co on Saturday night. The loss of Horwill leaves the Wallabies a little short on experience up front. Former Test captain Nathan Sharpe insists the Wallabies forwards can survive the physical blowtorch from the Boks with 81-Test hooker Stephen Moore and No.8 Ben Mowen forming a new leadership coalition for the pack. "Simmo (Simmons) had one of his best Tests against the All Blacks in Sydney because he's changed his mindset to be more confrontational, put on more big hits," Sharpe said. I think Simmo and the rest of the boys will step up to cover the loss of James. They have to. The good news for Horwill is that the twinge is to his left leg not the right hamstring which ruled him out of all Test rugby last year. He will miss two Tests. McKenzie is backing five-Test backrower Mowen, the new vice-captain, to be a big pack influence as he is at the Brumbies. The number of Tests he's played doesn't matter. He leads and has the respect of his teammates," McKenzie said. The fact he is at No.8 and Will is at halfback means they can communicate handily on the field too. Mowen took Horwill's absence as a call to arms for the rest of the pack. He brings a big, aggressive game to every Test plus voice and energy. Others have now got to make that up," Mowen said. It's the proudest moment of my career to be given this honour as vice-captain. The Wallaby pack must produce to give the best looking backline formation of the year the chances to run the Boks ragged. The energy that Israel Folau brings to the Wallabies was evident even at Ballymore training yesterday in the pre-training touch game. When he intercepted a Saia Faingaa pass to race away for a try, the biggest roar of the session erupted from both sides in the touch game. He will be Saturday night's talisman if the Wallabies only win him enough ball.