Rugby Tri Nations: All Blacks surprised by Argentina for first loss to Pumas

Argentina 25 All blacks 15

Come on Los Pumas.

Argentina has managed one of the great surprises of test rugby, surprising the All Blacks for the first time.

The Pumas’ first triumph over the All Blacks, in their 30th attempt, will be celebrated across a proud rugby nation, but it also deserves the greatest recognition for the circumstances in which it arrives.

Argentina has been very close on so many occasions against the All Blacks, but they finally have their historic moment after 27 consecutive defeats since the 21-21 draw in 1985 in Buenos Aires.

That they did it in Sydney, after spending two weeks in quarantine and playing a test for the last time 402 days ago, speaks volumes about the achievement. The tears of many of their players, and of coach Mario Ledesma, tell you all about what this means for the Pumas.

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The Argentines in the 9063-person crowd were celebrating in style after watching their men dominate the All Blacks early on.

Collectively, the All Blacks were left in a state of disbelief and Captain Sam Cane was extremely disappointed.

“The lesson is that in the rugby tryout you have to show up with the right intention, the right attitude every weekend, or it will be delivered to you,” Cane said.

“They were good tonight and we were not good enough. Their defense was outstanding.”

The All Blacks were supposed to respond to last week’s loss to the Wallabies in Brisbane, but despite returning to their first-choice team, Ian Foster’s tenure was affected by successive defeats to increase pressure on his unstable. new era.

The inconsistency that has plagued the All Blacks this season reared its ugly head again.

Discipline, urgency and execution were lacking for the All Blacks and they wasted repeated opportunities, missing a five-meter lineout and Rieko Ioane dropping the ball with Caleb Clarke unmarked out of him, in the second period as they tried to drag a half-time deficit 16-3.

Countless times in previous years we’ve witnessed the All Blacks pull off great getaways, but that clinical composure was nowhere to be seen.

Perhaps most disturbing of all, however, was when passes hit the platform almost every time a player in blue and white dived first. Based on body language alone, the Pumas certainly wanted this win more.

Argentina was dominant at the time of the scrum, found success with its maul and in Nicolás Sánchez, who calmly accumulated 25 points, had the superior playmaker.

Foster said the underdeveloped Pumas turned a “disadvantage into an advantage.”

“It was the second week in a row that we didn’t have good composure when things didn’t go our way,” Foster said.

“It hurts us a lot, but they should be very proud of their team. It was a historic victory for them.”

Defensively, the Pumas were excellent, defying predictions that they would have trouble cutting the pace on their return to the test arena by restricting the All Blacks to one line break for the entire game. His tackling intent and precision regularly stopped the predictable All Blacks ball carriers in their tracks, leading to frustration and unruly kicking options.

The collapse was a similar story, with Argentina bringing much more hunger to this area to disrupt the All Blacks’ ability to generate pressure.

Former Wallabies coach Michael Cheika, now in the Pumas training area, was likely an influential figure there, while captain Pablo Matera proved to be a frequent source of inspiration, making big shots and winning turnovers. None were more crucial than the one that failed in the 74th minute with the All Blacks in attack.

The temperamental All Blacks, however, were not helped by several moments of madness poking fun at the need for better discipline after last week’s loss.

Shannon Frizell and Dane Coles were penalized for unnecessary slaps to rival players who offered the Pumas easy breaks. In the case of Coles it was even worse with the penalty canceled.

However, referee Angus Gardner had a surprise when he called Jordie Barrett for an innocuous collision after a kick.

Sanchez’s first attempt was somewhat serendipitous after he recovered his chip kick from a rebound to the shin of a teammate, but there was no luck in the Pumas’ 13-point lead at halftime.

That margin would also have been higher, had it not been for Aaron Smith’s desperate tackle on Pumas wing Juan Imhoff after a breakout.

When Richie Mo’unga was kicked to death from a penalty, when the All Blacks tried to strike back before the break, it was clear they were nervous.

In the second half, the All Blacks continued their kicking game, a clear sign of respect for the Pumas’ strong defense.

The All Blacks needed 53 minutes to finally break the Pumas line. That came from a quick lineout throw and a rolling maul that ended with Cane crossing.

Hoskins Sotutu injected shock from the bench and Clarke made his first test attempt, but it was too much, a little too late, for the All Blacks.

While the Pumas deserve their historic victory, serious questions must now be asked about this All Blacks team.

All black 15 (Sam Cane, Caleb Clarke tries; Richie Mo’unga scam, pen)
Cougars 25 (Nicolás Sánchez try; with, 6 pens)
HT: 3-16