Rugby Championship: Springboks and All Blacks, super start

All Blacks and Springboks overwhelming in the first day of the Southern Hemisphere Rugby Championship, this year played with a reduced schedule of three rounds for the incumbent World Cup. Scoring 5 tries in 40 minutes and then 2 more, New Zealand destroyed Argentina 41-12 in Mendoza. In Pretoria, in the afternoon, a nightmare debut for Eddie Jones on the Australia bench, overwhelmed 43-12 by reigning world champion South Africa. In a week scheduled New Zealand-South Africa and Australia-Argentina.

Argentina-New Zealand 12-41

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In Mendoza it started with a thrill: Damian McKenzie, deployed at the opener, kicked away just outside his in-goal area, was blocked by Pablo Matera, but with a flash managed to squeeze the ball before the arrival of two opponents. And from the goal almost conceded to scoring three in 12 minutes is a snap. From a very deep restart, huge break by Rieko Ioane who reaches almost 22 opponents, gives way to newcomer winger Emoni Narawa for a few more meters gained, then Shannon Frizell and Scott Barrett pave the way for Dane Coles’ sprint. It’s a. On an attack deep in the 22, the Argentines managed to fend off an early attempt by Scott Barrett, but were unable to tighten on Ardie Savea’s short-range charge. And two. Then Beauden Barrett also enters the scene, who receives the ball in his 22 and runs away until just beyond halfway to then unload the oval on the other brother Jordie, who can fly away all alone up to the try. And there are three. In the 29th minute, on action that started quickly from a scrum on the left out, it was McKenzie who served with a short pass from Ioane, who broke a tackle and broke through in goal. McKenzie who misses the first two conversions and puts in the next two. It will be too soon to tell, but with these choices by coach Ian Foster, after two very difficult years (4 defeats in 2022), it seems like we can finally see All Blacks playing with a more appropriate style: it is true that everything cannot be reduced to half an hour of the game and referring to only one player, but seeing him do it with McKenzie in place of Richie Mounga (on the bench) and Beauden covering his back as a full back, will mean something. The fifth try also arrives before the break: scrum close to the in-goal area, the Pumas retreat, Aaron Smith then decides that it is enough to collect, avoids Santiago Carreras’ intervention with a feint and crushes without obstacles (McKenzie transform). And the yellow card also arrives for the Argentine number 8 Rodrigo Bruni, who leaves the group too soon. Argentina, which nonetheless fought without interruption from the start, found satisfaction in the 52nd minute, when prop Lucio Sordoni spiked from close range after a series of rejected attempts (Emiliano Boffelli didn’t convert, however). But 5 minutes go by and from a scrum just outside the 22 on the right out, the All Blacks play fast towards the opposite side with McKenzie, who first exchanges with a teammate and then tears vertically the Argentine defense, to offer Beauden Barrett a ball that the extreme takes to the goal with an elusive run. McKenzie doesn’t convert, then moves to full back because Mounga takes the place of Beauden Barrett, while in the 65th minute the very complicated game of Gonzalo Bertranou ends, born and raised in Mendoza and today in the 50th cap with the Pumas. And in the 76th minute the debutant’s try also arrives, caught on the right by a beautiful pass from McKenzie: the winger is free and can comfortably hit the flag (McKenzie still misses the conversion). With time running out, the second Argentine try arrives, signed by hooker Augustin Creevy, who after a touche 5 meters away, collects the oval and stretches out to hit (and Boffelli converts).

South Africa-Australia 43-12

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The choice to oust Dave Rennie and rely on Jones for the second time (after the 2001-2005 period with the defeat in the home final of the 2003 World Cup), currently only earned Australia the eighth defeat in the 8 matches played at Loftus Versfeld. Always looking for some artifice to amaze (or to be talked about?), this time Jones decides to appoint two captains on the pitch, inspired by a well-established practice in rugby XIII: prop James Slipper joins Michael Hooper. “We want to do things differently and better,” Jones explained. It was a bummer. And to say that for the guests the game started under excellent auspices: first the error from the pitch by Manie Libbok (in his first appearance as a starter after the previous 3 as a substitute), then in the 8th minute Marika Koroibete’s try , following an assist from center Len Ikitau, after Allan Alaalatoa had managed to recover the ball that Jean Kleyn (who made his debut for his country of birth after wearing the Ireland shirt 5 times and having been out of action for 3 years internationally) had dropped out of his hands after stealing a lineout. But in 3 minutes South Africa turns the limelight: first in the 13th minute Libbok hits the center from a set, then in the 16th minute with the superiority off the coast created by the winger Canan Moodie, it is Andre Esterhuizen who opens the way for the other winger Kurt-Lee Arendse for the undisturbed jog in goal. And in the half hour Arendse scores twice: Marvin Orie brings down the touchline and triggers the maul, flanker Marco van Staden (also making his debut as starter after 10 substitute appearances) comes out and opens for Bongi Mbonambi, who first comes back with a feint and then the wing needs a perfect ball on the closed side, Suliasi Vunivalu doesn’t have time to close and the second try arrives (Libbok converts both). In added time Reece Hodge misses a 60m goal and the break goes up 17-5. The second half opens with Arendse’s hat-trick: the winger receives an offload from Lukhanyo Am, returns to the left and goes beyond the defenders to crush. This time Libbok misses the posts. In the 54th and 59th minutes Australia collects two technical tries and as many yellow cards: the first for hooker Dave Porecki who deliberately sinks a direct maul over the line, the second for Koroibete, who voluntarily interrupts a direct pass to Arendse, that in front of him he would no longer find anyone. And in the 76th minute Pieter-Steph du Toit’s try also arrives, who with the Australian defense open by a series of breakthroughs, dives over the ruck and goes over the line (Libbok converts). With time running out, South Africa loses the ball in attack, rookie Carter Gordon recovers it, in front of him he sees the opponent’s half of the field totally free and flies into the goal, converting it also for the final 43-12.