South Africa's nationwide Rugby World Cup tour continued today with a visit to the black Johannesburg township of Soweto followed by an audience with former president Nelson Mandela.

Thousands of Springbok rugby fans braved pouring rain Friday as they spilled onto the streets in Pretoria and Johannesburg to cheer skipper John Smit and his teammates on the first leg of their victory parade.

While the crowds were thinner today with only a few hundred turning out in the streets of Soweto, the reception was no less warm.

The sparse turnout compared with the previous day was put down to a combination of poor weather and a succession of changes to the Springboks' program - many residents seemed unaware of the visit, an AFP photographer noted.

Those who did brave the elements, some still clad in their pyjamas, sang and danced as the bus ferrying the team and the William Webb Ellis cup made its way through the township.

Next stop on the countrywide tour was a visit to former president Mandela who told them: "Thank you very much, you have really put us on the map."

The Nobel Peace Prize winner greeted the team wearing the Boks' gold and green shirt which he had famously worn to mark their first World Cup win in 1995.

The visit to Soweto, the country's largest black township, had been initially removed from the Boks' touring agenda only to be reinstated after a U-turn by SA Rugby.

Bryan Habana, one of only two black players in the team, welcomed the decision by SA Rugby.

World rugby's player of the year hailed the visit as an opportunity to inspire youngsters in disadvantaged communities.

"People who are disadvantaged don't always have the opportunity to drive in to the cities to see us," Habana said on Friday.

"Everybody deserves to have a glimpse of us ... Hopefully we will be inspiration for youngsters to do the same [become heroes] for their country."

AFP