The Springboks rule the Rugby Championship!
Rassie Erasmus’ team produced a dominant display in scoring
five tries to one in a 46-13 triumph against Argentina
in Salta on Saturday to clinch the title ahead
of Australia.
The Wallabies had walloped the All Blacks 47-26 in Perth earlier in the day
to go to the top of the log.
Flyhalf Handre Pollard was the star of the show, scoring a
South African record 31 points against Argentina with two tries, three
conversions and five penalties as the Boks kept up the pressure on the
scoreboard to grind down Los Pumas and secure their first Championship title
since Peter de Villiers’ 2009 outfit won the Tri-Nations.
It was a well deserved tournament victory, with Erasmus’
team the most consistent in the single-round format.
Of course, it’s all about the Rugby World Cup that starts in
Japan in September, but the
confidence gained from going unbeaten in the Championship can only bode well
for the Boks heading into the 21 September showdown with the All Blacks in Yokohama.
Well done guys!! Congratulations on a splendid victory and successful campaign. pic.twitter.com/eYYWf4Xiq6
— Springboks (@Springboks) August 10, 2019
But it was actually the hosts who made the better start on
Saturday.
They played with better cohesion initially, and after
flyhalf Nicolas Sanchez broke the line, he pulled off an excellent cross-kick
for wing Santiago Cordero to dot down inside two minutes.
Considering how the Aussies were on top against New Zealand even before Scott Barrett had been
sent off in Perth, it looked like the Boks were
also going to face an uphill battle in Salta.
But the visiting forwards, lead by the powerful front row of
Tendai Mtawarira, Bongi Mbonambi and Trevor Nyakane, slowly got on top of their
opponents and earned a number of penalties from French referee Romain Poite.
Pollard slotted his first three-pointer in the ninth minute,
and soon after that, the South African forwards stamped their authority on
their opponents.
Eben Etzebeth claimed a five-metre lineout, and Bongi
Mbonambi controlled the ball at the back of the maul to dive over.
Sanchez kept Argentina
in touch with two penalties as Pollard added three of his own to make it 17-13
to the Boks after the opening half-an-hour.
Pollard, though, broke the game open as following a
concerted Bok attack, the pivot powered over just before halftime to extend the
lead to 24-13 at the break.
Handle Pollard.
— Springboks (@Springboks) August 10, 2019
Man of the Match !
Well played!! pic.twitter.com/cmvJ6o2bCz
The 25-year-old No 10 banged over another penalty early in
the second half to virtually end the game as a contest at 27-13.
Erasmus’ men could’ve just gone through the motions for the
rest of the match, but they showed a pleasing ruthlessness that was missing in
the 16-16 draw against the All Blacks to finish off the Argentinians.
A classy offload by replacement prop Steven Kitshoff put Franco
Mostert into a gap, and the No 5 lock nearly went all the over. Pollard got the
five-pointer – his second of the game – and with that, the title was secured.
The Boks weren’t done, though, as Makazole Mapimpi rounded off
in the left-hand corner, and wing mate Cheslin Kolbe benefited from a brilliant
Frans Steyn dummy to score on the right.
%%%twitter https://twitter.com/unionargentina?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@unionargentina @qantaswallabies @AllBlacks pic.twitter.com/oQ4LoZUlVK
— Springboks (@Springboks)
Points-Scorers
Argentina 13 – Tries: Santiago Cordero. Conversion: Nicolas Sanchez (1). Penalties: Sanchez (2).
South Africa 46 – Tries: Bongi Mbonambi, Handre Pollard (2), Makazole Mapimpi, Cheslin Kolbe. Conversions: Pollard (3). Penalties: Pollard (5).
@ashfakmohamed