Five Points of Pumas Performance

Four of the six Rugby Championship rounds have come and gone. Argentina have an 0-4 record and face an extremely challenging final two matches to get a victory.

Saturday morning’s defeat against Australia asked the question as to whether or not the learning needed to be done is in fact being acted upon?

Five talking points of Los Pumas’ performance are as follows:

Drained Players and Weak Bench
As was the case against England, South Africa and New Zealand, the South Americans dropped their productivity in the final quarter. In the post-match interview Head Coach, Daniel Hourcade said it was a mental issue. Is it though? Could the problem be something altogether different? Is there not a repetitive pattern of players being tired? I would go so far to say – Argentina’s starting players are putting in so much in the first 60 minutes that they are drained and unable to finish. Add to this that Argentina does not possess the depth among reserves that Australia, England, New Zealand and South Africa all do. So is there a solution? Yes – Tactics need to be rethought to produce a game plan which can endure 80 minutes.

Pumas Props are Outmatched
The unthinkable has become true, Argentina’s props are being beaten. In 2017 the technique is not that of a famous Pumas scrum. Lucas Noguera Paz and Nahuel Tetaz Chaparro were both outplayed on Saturday and both were penalized in the scrum. Although Hourcade is in search of mobile props, the reality is that today Argentina does not have a Marcos Ayerza. Was Ayerza truly mobile? Herein lies the failure as no, he was not. He was a classic prop who won scrums, tackled and cleared rucks. He was not a renowned ball-carrier. Indeed Noguera Paz excels in comparison as a ball-carrier. Furthermore Argentina have a great ball-carrying prop in Ramiro Herrera. With him and Ayerza Argentina delivered. But now they are outmatched, leaving Agustín Creevy to hook the ball while retreating. The Platform needs to be solid.

Reality Not Being Faced by Daniel Hourcade
Defeated on the park for the 6th out of 7 tests in 2017, Daniel Hourcade is a man on borrowed time. He is a man keen on structure and execution and following Saturday’s defeat he underlined that Argentina made costly errors. How much longer can his rhetoric carry-on? The team is not winning, is conceding bonus point losses and not competing for 80 minutes. Adjustments are required immediately. When something is not working alternatives need to be found. It is time to face facts, Argentina has beaten just Georgia and Japan in the past 12 months.

Pablo Matera Among the Best 
Although Australia won emphatically the Wallabies will not feel that they put in a complete performance. One area in which Argentina was the better team was the break-down. Pablo Matera, Tomás Lezana and Agustín Creevy all won turnovers, with Matera being the main destroyer. His ball-carrying and tackling are well documented, needing no further elaboration. His all-round game makes him one of Argentina’s most important players and one of the world’s best flankers.

John Lacey’s non-decision on Israel Folau 
In the 57th minute in Salta, Tomás Lavanini was yellow carded. The try was on and through his actions, Lavanini ended it unfairly and illegally. Referee Pascal Gauzere and assistant Romain Poite determined it to have been a yellow card. Using the television replays, Gauzere then awarded South Africa with a penalty try. Two matches later and Argentina were involved in an extraordinarily similar situation. This time it was on the other foot. In the 58th minute Argentina were pressing away at the Australian tryline. The pass then went wide with Israel Folau knocking-on as Nicolás Sánchez passed to Matías Orlando who had three unmarked players outside him. Lacey called knock-on and never did he discuss with the assistant nor was it checked with the TMO. It was 24-13 at the time. It would have been 24-20 had Clancy been consistent with Gauzere.