The All Blacks might have all the odds and history in their favour, but Steve Hansen is not taking a Pumas side that is on the rise ‘lightly’ this week. With that mindset, it shows the All Blacks are ready for a Pumas onslaught in round three of the The Rugby Championship.
Beating Argentina would see the All Blacks go a long way toward securing the championship for another season. Argentina are fresh off an historic win at home over South Africa.
All told, both teams have points of their own to prove and both will strive to do this in front of a packed house at FMG Stadium, Hamilton on Saturday night.
Quite simply, Argentina won’t be an easy beat for the All Blacks.
Argentina: A Team On The Rise
This is a side that plays some exciting, expansive, and some would say, enthusiastic style of rugby. It isn’t uncommon to see the Argentine back line attempting to counter attack when on their own five-metre line.
Their inclusion in this yearly tournament has seen much improvement in overall skill and execution. This constant rise in ability has seen Argentina challenge, and beat, some of World Rugby’s giants on the International stage. The Pumas have beaten South Africa twice in less than a year. During the Rugby World Cup in 2015, Argentina were semi finalists and only narrowly went down to Australia in that clash.
Nicolas Sanchez was a big part of Argentina’s success in the UK and finished with 97 points. Sanchez will need to repeat his heroics if his men are to upset the All Blacks in their own backyard.
TEAM NAMING: Argentina make 3 changes to side for #AllBlacks clash in Hamilton.https://t.co/aWGJ4O2ryw #NZLvARG pic.twitter.com/GV5nF6nVuF
— All Blacks (@AllBlacks) September 8, 2016
Key flanker Juan Manual Leguizamon has been ruled out of the match with injury, leaving a big gap in the Argentine forward pack. Inspirational captain Agustin Creevy will lead the Pumas again in a squad that is as expected, apart from the injury to Leguizamon.
With an Argentine side now competing in Super Rugby, there is ample opportunity for the National side to only get better. The Jaguars had a difficult opening season but did manage to get a couple of victories. If their style of play is anything to go by, Argentina will play a fast game against the All Blacks and use the speed of their backs up the middle. The back line is where All Black coach Steve Hansen believes will pose a big threat.
All Blacks Name Their Strongest Side
The All Blacks need to be wary. Given the fact that Hansen has selected the strongest squad possible, you’d say that Argentina are expected to bring a challenge.
Beauden Barrett starts in the No.10 jersey for the third match in a row. Barrett is widely regarded as the best player in his position right now. The first-five has especially impressed with his running game and ability to read opposition defenses. His open-play kicking is better than its ever been, but his work on his converting on goal from the tee.
Barrett in career-best form
Barrett says that he has always worked hard on his craft. With the luxury of career-best form and the starting role at his hand, Barrett is firm in his belief that the motivation hasn’t fallen by the wayside.
“When you’re clear in your own mind, it’s simple, and not cluttered it makes things a lot easier. I prepare the same no matter what and I am always trying to look to improve my game”.
Ryan Crotty was ‘touch and go’ to play in the All Blacks last game in Wellington two weeks ago. Re-selected in the midfield, Crotty proved that his place in the All Blacks is justified after a strong showing against Australia three weeks ago. Pairing again with Malakai Fekitoa, the midfield will provide a ‘second pair of eyes’ to Barrett at first-five. Against Argentina, a team that like to use the ball and attack from anywhere, look for Aaron Cruden to come in and help off the All Blacks bench early in the second half.
Youngsters will continue to grow under Hansen, but continuity in selection is the focus for the All Blacks right now. There is a young leadership group following the departure of Richie McCaw, Daniel Carter, Ma’a Nonu, and Conrad Smith.
All Blacks respect Los Pumas threat
There is just no doubting that Argentina are one of the more formidable oppositions that the All Blacks face each year. The two sides have played each other 22 times, with the All Blacks winning 21 of those. There has been a single draw, that came way back in 1985.
The All Blacks will need to slow down Argentine ball at the breakdown, as this is exactly what they can expect to be targeted on.
Hansen says that he and his team respect Argentina;
“We’ve always had respect for them, and they’ve been a formidable opponent for a long time. The games have been close over the years, and you only have to look back to the last World Cup for that”.
Saturday will see All Black captain Kieran Read play his 90th match on the International stage.
Also, Owen Franks appears in his 83rd Test and needs to score a try or he will equal the record held by Italian prop Salvatore Perugini for playing the most Internationals ‘without scoring a try’. LWOS wish him luck in that quest.
Round Three Of The Rugby Championship
After the opening rounds of the tournament, the World Champions are on-top.
While many would say that the All Blacks should run riot, what transpires on Saturday should be a different story. Argentina have so much promise and will only improve over time–and are due a win. World Rugby needs a challenger for the All Blacks, one that can go the full 80-minutes and achieve that on the All Blacks ‘own soil’.
Could Argentina be that team? It is likely, but in reality the All Blacks are still hot favorites.
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Be sure to catch Last Word On Sports coverage immediately after the final whistle, live from FMG Stadium, Waikato. Look forward to comprehensive coverage of all the major talking points, comments from the coaches and match highlights.
