Springboks run rampant in Argentina to win Rugby Championship

The Springboks ran rampant to down Argentina 46-13 and win the Rugby Championship. South Africa’s victory was thoroughly deserved as Los Pumas were badly outplayed in a performance in which there were little positives but plenty of lessons.

With 2019 being a Rugby World Cup yet today’s fixture was the final one in the Rugby Championship. Having lost against both New Zealand, and Australia today’s defeat sees Mario Ledesma’s side winless. Both prior losses were by small margins while today’s defeat was substantial.

In 2018 Ledesma saw Argentina to two wins in the Rugby Championship. It was something never before achieved. Yet today with 40 days to go until RWC 2019 Argentina are in serious trouble. The core of the problem is rest with Los Jaguares’ sensational season coming at a cost.

There is still one more match before officially departing. The game will be a repeat of today’s match only this time in Pretoria. Ledesma thereby has no time to play with but a lot to think about including which players will be rested and who will be added from Los Jaguares XV.

Early indications in the performance were vastly different to that of the final scoreline. The promising start saw Nicolás Sánchez break clear and offload to Facundo Isa. In doing so the French-based Pumas duo had Argentina got well into the opposition 22. From the ruck Sánchez then kicked for Santiago Cordero who scored.

Following the score from the Bordeaux winger, Argentina would be suffocated at first and then ran over by a rampant South African performance. Following a penalty from Handré Pollard a superb maul saw Bongi Mbonambi scoring.

Pollard would miss the conversion though with three penalties and converting a try of his own the Springboks would go into the interval with a 24-13 lead.

In the second half Pollard added a 5th penalty to put South Africa two converted tries in the lead. From there Argentina had a period of better play and were twice within range of scoring. Instead South Africa held firm, even following the yellow carding of scrum-half Faf de Klerk.

The visibly outplayed and tired Pumas were out of the game before the completion of the third quarter. The sold out Estadio Padre Ernesto Martearena would begin emptying early and South Africa would continue scoring.

Second half tries would come to Pollard in addition to wingers Makazole Mapimpi, and Cheslin Kolbe. With it South Africa were comprehensive winners though Kolbe’s try had indeed come from a blatant forward pass.

The match gave South Africa the Rugby Championship title and underlined the Springboks as major RWC contenders. For Argentina the result was a strong reminder of the need for player management to get through the long season.

 

SCORING

ARGENTINA 13
Tries – S. Cordero (2′)
Cons – N. Sánchez 1/1 (3′)
Pens – N. Sánchez 2/2 (17′, 28′)

SOUTH AFRICA 46
Tries – B. Mbonambi (13′), H. Pollard 2 (40′, 53′), M. Mapimpi (64′), C. Kolbe (67′)
Cons – H. Pollard 3/5 (40′, 65′, 68′)
Pens – H. Pollard 5/5 (9′, 19′, 26′, 31′, 42′)
Yellow cards – F. de Klerk (48′)

 

TEAMS

ARGENTINA
1 Nahuel Tetaz Chaparro (17 Mayco Vivas 50′), 2 Agustín Creevy (16 Julián Montoya 50′), 3 Juan Figallo (18 Santiago Medrano 50′), 4 Matías Alemanno (19 Guido Petti 60′), 5 Marcos Kremer, 6 Pablo Matera (capt.), 7 Javier Ortega Desio, 8 Facundo Isa (20 Tomás Lezana 50′), 9 Tomás Cubelli (21 Gonzalo Bertanou 61′), 10 Nicolás Sánchez (22 Benjamín Urdapilleta 55′), 11 Ramiro Moyano, 12 Jerónimo de la Fuente, 13 Matías Moroni, 14 Santiago Cordero (23 Joaquín Tuculet 63′), 15 Emiliano Boffelli

SOUTH AFRICA
1 Tendai Mtawarira (17 Steven Kitshoff 47′-78′), 2 Bongi Mbonambi (16 Malcolm Marx 47′), 3 Trevor Nyakane (18 Frans Malherbe 50′), 4 Eben Etzebeth, 5 Franco Mostert, 6 Kwagga Smith (20 Francois Louw 55′), 7 Pieter-Steph du Toit, 8 Duane Vermeulen (capt.) (19 RG Snyman 66′), 9 Faf de Klerk (21 Herschel Jantjies 72′), 10 Handré Pollard, 11 Makazole Mapimpi, 12 Damian de Allende (22 Frans Steyn 66′), 13 Lukhanyo Am (23 Jesse Kriel 60′), 14 Cheslin Kolbe, 15 Willie le Roux

 

MATCH OFFICIALS

Referee: Romain Poite (FFR)
Assistants: Matthew Carley (RFU) & Karl Dickson (RFU)
TMO: Rowan Kitt (RFU)

 

Attendance: 22,190