A black shut out for Argentina in Newcastle

It was a black shut out for Argentina in Newcastle. New Zealand were on top throughout the match; their 38-0 win speaks volumes of what transpired during the match. New Zealand played very well, Argentina did not.

Not only did they do all the scoring, but New Zealand controlled possession and territory. Argentina defended very well for the most part, but pressure resulted in points. In contrast, Argentina played the full match without having a shot at goal.

The first scoring opportunity came early. Santiago Medrano was penalized for angling-in at a scrum. Jordie Barrett’s 4th minute penalty attempt was wide.

There were ominous signs three minutes later. A mistake from Nicolás Sánchez saw New Zealand maintaining possession and territory. He kicked out on the full having taken the ball back inside the 22. New Zealand attacked with nine phases before kicking. Jordie Barrett juggled the ball and knocked-on over the try line.

Argentina continued to defend but were let down by basics. A poor clearance kick from Sánchez handed New Zealand an attacking lineout inside the Argentine 22. After 12 phases Dane Coles scores in the right corner. At the time of Coles’ try New Zealand had played with 81% possession and 94% territory.

New Zealand were controlling play well. Rucks are not contested as New Zealand’s players cleared well as Pumas arrived. When Argentina did get the ball they let themselves down with unforced errors. A 16th minute knock-on from Sánchez nearly resulted in New Zealand’s second try. They did come away with points as Richie Mo’unga made it 10-0 with a penalty.

Scrums were also going the way of the All Blacks. Joe Moody won two against Medrano in the 20th and 23rd minutes. The second cost Argentina a scoring opportunity.

Los Pumas would have additional chances, but knock-ons cost them. Emiliano Boffelli and Jerónimo de la Fuente lost the ball in the 28th and 30th minutes. The second instance saw a dreadful pass from Felipe Ezcurra. It came on the back of a 15 meter gain from a rolling-maul; This was not Argentina’s day.

New Zealand’s dominance continued in the second half. Argentine execution continued to let them downed New Zealand capitalized on the fragile Argentine scrum. Moody outmuscled Medrano and Ardie Savea did the rest, powering over to score.

The 17-0 lead was game over. Mario Ledesma changed players. It did not improve the execution. He replied Sánchez with Santiago Carreras; the Córdoba fullback was now playing fly half. It was not a memorable time for Carreras. He threw two intercept passes to Will Jordan who had free runs to score two tries.

New Zealand replacement Tyrel Lomax was yellow carded for foul play on Lucio Sordoni. It was a missed red card, though it had no impact on the match. Argentina looked to score in response. Instead another loose pass from Argentina turned into seven New Zealand points. Like Jordan, Patrick Tuipulotu had a free run to score.

Argentina face Australia next Saturday. The match will be the final Pumas match of the year. Based on today’s performance, many changes are probable for the concluding Tri Nations fixture.

 

SCORING

NEW ZEALAND 38
Tries – D. Coles (12’), A. Savea (52’), W. Jordan 2 (68’, 71’), P. Tu’ipulotu (80+5’)
Cons – R. Mo’unga 5/5 (13’, 53’, 69’, 72’, 80+6’)
Pens – J. Barrett 0/1, R. Mo’unga 1/2 (16’)
Yellow cards – T. Lomax (80’)

ARGENTINA 0

 

TEAMS

NEW ZEALAND
1 Joe Moody (17 Karl Tu’inukuafe 56’), 2 Dane Coles (16 Codie Taylor 59’), 3 Nepo Laulala (18 Tyrel Lomax 56’), 4 Scott Barrett, 5 Sam Whitelock (19 Patrick Tu’ipulotu 62’), 6 Akira Ioane (20 Hoskins Sotutu 64’), 7 Sam Cane (capt.), 8 Ardie Savea, 9 Aaron Smith (21 TJ Perenara 59’), 10 Richie Mo’unga, 11 Caleb Clarke (23 Will Jordan 64’), 12 Jack Goodhue, 13 Anton Lienert-Brown (22 Rieko Ioane 53’), 14 Jordie Barrett, 15 Beauden Barrett

ARGENTINA
1 Mayco Vivas (17 Nahuel Tetaz Chaparro 55’), 2 Julián Montoya (16 Santiago Socino 66’), 3 Santiago Medrano (18 Lucio Sordoni 55’-80’), 4 Guido Petti, 5 Lucas Paulos (19 Matías Alemanno 59’), 6 Pablo Matera (capt.), 7 Marcos Kremer (20 Santiago Grondona 61’), 8 Facundo Isa, 9 Felipe Ezcurra (21 Gonzalo Bertranou 66’), 10 Nicolás Sánchez (22 Santiago Carreras 62’), 11 Ramiro Moyano, 12 Jerónimo de la Fuente (23 Lucas Mensa 59’), 13 Juan Cruz Mallía, 14 Santiago Cordero, 15 Emiliano Boffelli

 

MATCH OFFICIALS

Referee: Nic Berry (Australia)
Assistants: Angus Gardner (Australia) & Ben O’Keeffe (New Zealand)
TMO: Paul Williams (New Zealand)