Tendai Mtawarira, the South Africa prop who has been known as the Beast since he was 10 years old, has told the Lions to prepare for war at the Absa Stadium on Saturday.

The 23-year-old, part of an all-Sharks Springbok front row that will be playing on home turf, is not known for his scrummaging but declared that if the Lions thought they would be able to push him around, they were in for a shock.

"We have been working very hard on our scrummaging and we will take the Lions on," he said. "It is going to be a war up front and we will come out with all guns blazing. We will muscle up. It all starts with the forwards and we have some big, experienced guys in our ranks.

"The Lions have thrown the ball around a bit on the tour so far, but I expect them to tighten up on Saturday. They can play the game more than one way, but the forecast is for a sunny day with the temperature hitting 24C and that will suit us fine. I can't wait."

The South Africa second row Bakkies Botha, who likes to live up to his reputation as the enforcer in the Springbok pack, predicted the opening minutes of the first Test would not be for the faint-hearted.

"The first 10 minutes will be fun," he said. "The folks at home should keep their blankets pulled up to their chins. The Lions laid down the physical challenge to us when they selected their squad and it is what I live for in rugby.

"The Lions will challenge all facets of our game but our biggest strength is the knowledge that, as a group, we have been in virtually every situation there is in rugby – and we trust each other when it comes to sorting out problems."

The president of the South African Rugby Union, Oregan Hoskins, delivered a less than diplomatic pre-match address, saying: "There is no doubt that our players are going to be required to put their bodies on the line and that no quarter will be asked or given. A Test series against the Lions will require them to dig deep into the physical and mental reserves but I know they are ready for the challenge. They have to be."

The South Africa assistant coach, Gary Gold, responded to claims that the Springboks would be undercooked – they have not played a Test for seven months, with many of their players having no competitive action for five weeks – by saying that the Lions would be overdone.

"When we played Wales in two Tests here a year ago, they complained afterwards that they were exhausted after a long season," he said. "The Lions have already played six matches and they have yet to face us on the high veld. By then, I think, tiredness and injuries will have taken their toll."