Boks must be wary of Pumas backlash

Allister Coetzee's 'new' Boks are still in their infancy as a team, and were lucky to beat Los Pumas 30-23 in Nelspruit last Saturday following a stuttering performance. Photo: Samuel Shivambu

Allister Coetzee's 'new' Boks are still in their infancy as a team, and were lucky to beat Los Pumas 30-23 in Nelspruit last Saturday following a stuttering performance. Photo: Samuel Shivambu

Published Aug 27, 2016

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Tonight’s Rugby Championship clash between the Springboks and Argentina at the Estadio Padre Ernesto Martearena in Salta (9.40 SA time kick-off) has all the ingredients of being a recipe for disaster for the South Africans.

Allister Coetzee’s ‘new’ Boks are still in their infancy as a team, and were lucky to beat Los Pumas 30-23 in Nelspruit last Saturday following a stuttering performance.

South Africa can’t afford to repeat last weekend’s mistakes in Salta because Argentina are an entirely different outfit at home, which the Boks have discovered - to their detriment - on a number of occasions since the start of the Rugby Championship-era.

While Los Pumas normally play with a passion fuelled by their national anthem and partisan crowd, the Boks seem to be stuck in second gear when they take the field in the country of T-bone steaks, red wine and Lionel Messi.

Last year in Buenos Aires, the South Africans recorded their biggest margin of victory - 14 points (26-12) - against Argentina away from home in the Rugby Championship. It was a backlash for a shock 37-25 defeat at the hands of Los Pumas the previous week in Durban.

Prior to that, the Boks’ biggest winning margin in Argentina was by five points in Mendoza in 2013, a year after the teams played to a 16-16 draw in the same city.

The last time the Boks played in Salta - in 2014 - they needed a last-minute Morne Steyn penalty to clinch a 33-31 victory.

Then there is the man in charge, monsieur Jerome Garces, who isn’t one of South Africa’s favourite referees. Of his previous seven Tests officiating the Boks, they lost four and won three.

So, the chances of an upset are huge, and the stars are aligned for Argentina to register their first win over the men in green and gold on home soil.

Bok captain Adriaan Strauss is under no illusions as to what awaits his troops tonight. Los Pumas are more than just a threat; they have some serious bite.

“The Argentinians have been semi-finalists in Rugby World Cups, so they are a rugby force. They need to be respected,” Strauss said.

“This is a massive Test match for both teams in their backyard. We know they are a passionate nation, and they will come with a backlash as well following the defeat in Nelspruit.”

But today’s encounter could be the match when Coetzee’s men finally deliver a convincing 80-minute display.

There have been glimpses of their new attacking game coming together, and their opening and final tries at Mbombela Stadium last Saturday were clinically finished thanks to some quick-thinking and swift handling. But there was also too many unforced errors, poor execution and terrible decision-making.

If the Boks can do the basics well and execute their plans efficiently, they should have no problem dispatching Los Pumas - no matter where in the world they play.

“We need to be better in everything we do and lift the standard,” Strauss added.

“We have to make the step-up, because there were a few areas in the game where we were very disappointing.

“We have high standards and we want to fix things.”

TEAMS

ARGENTINA

15-Joaquin Tuculet, 14-Santiago Cordero, 13-Matias Orlando, 12-Juan Martin Hernandez, 11-Manuel Montero, 10-Nicolas Sanchez, 9-Martin Landajo, 8-Facundo Isa, 7-Juan Manuel Leguizamon, 6-Pablo Matera, 5-Tomas Lavanini, 4-Matias Alemanno, 3-Ramiro Herrera, 2-Agustin Creevy, 1-Nahuel Tetaz Chaparro

Replacements: 16-Julian Montoya, 17-Felipe Arregui, 18-Enrique Pieretto, 19-Guido Petti, 20-Javier Ortega Desio, 21-Tomas Cubelli, 22-Santiago Gonzalez Iglesias, 23-Lucas Gonzalez Amorosino

SOUTH AFRICA

15-Johan Goosen, 14-Ruan Combrinck, 13-Lionel Mapoe, 12-Damian de Allende, 11-Bryan Habana, 10-Elton Jantjies, 9-Faf de Klerk; 8-Warren Whiteley, 7-Oupa Mahoje, 6-Francois Louw, 5-Lood de Jager, 4-Eben Etzebeth, 3-Vincent Koch, 2-Adriaan Strauss, 1-Tendai Mtawarira

Replacements: 16-Bongi Mbonambi, 17-Steven Kitshoff, 18-Lourens Adriaanse, 19-Pieter-Steph du Toit, 20-Jaco Kriel, 21-Rudy Paige, 22-Morne Steyn, 23-Jesse Kriel – Saturday Star

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