Springbok assistant coach Mzwandile Stick expects a “desperate” Argentina to come out firing at Twickenham on Saturday. SIMON BORCHARDT reports.
The world champions head into the clash on the back of a 67-30 demolition of the Pumas in Durban and are heavy favourites to win again – in the process becoming the first Springbok team to claim back-to-back Tri-Nations/Rugby Championship titles in the tournament’s 29-year history.
However, Argentina – who are staging their ‘home’ match in London for commercial reasons – have already shown that they can bounce back from defeat. They followed a 41-24 loss to the All Blacks in Cordoba with a famous 29-23 win in Buenos Aires, and suffered a 28-24 defeat to the Wallabies in Townsville before winning 28-26 in Sydney.
Stick warned that although Los Pumas are out of Rugby Championship contention, they will be driven by pride and passion.
“Argentina always respond strongly – they lost to the All Blacks and then beat them the next week, same with Australia. We’d be stupid not to learn from that.
“They’ll be desperate and they’ve picked quality players. If we switch off, they’ll punish us.
“We need a solid set-piece foundation, a balanced kicking game, and to pitch up mentally. If we do that, we’ll give ourselves the best chance.”
TEAM: Los Pumas change seven for Bok rematch
Argentina coach Felipe Contepomi has made seven changes to his side, including a new halfback pairing of Simón Benítez Cruz and Gerónimo Prisciantelli.
“We’ve studied them,” Stick said. “They don’t have many Test caps, but like a lot of their backline they come from sevens backgrounds, so we know their profiles and strengths. If we’re not at our best, they’ll punish us.
“They still have experienced players around them – [centre Santiago] Chocobares has been outstanding, [winger Juan Cruz] Mallía is there, [flanks Marcos] Kremer and [Pablo] Matera are world-class. So it’s going to be tough.”
The Boks dominated the second half at Kings Park after leading 25-23 at the break, but Stick wants an 80-minute performance this time.
“Last week there were too many soft penalties, like offsides, that kept them in the game,” he said. “That can’t happen again. We know our pressure points and where we want to put Argentina under strain, but we must be accurate and disciplined.”
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Meanwhile, captain Siya Kolisi insisted the team’s focus is on the match rather than making history by defending their southern hemisphere crown.
“The most important thing is putting on the Springbok jersey and honouring it in every way we can,” he said. “We can’t control the result, but we can make sure we play as hard as possible. The magnitude of the game doesn’t change the way we prepare.”
PREVIEW: Boks eye back-to-back southern crowns
A strong turnout of South African expat fans is expected at Twickenham, which served as a neutral venue for the Springboks’ 35-7 win against the All Blacks in a 2023 World Cup warm-up match.
“Playing at Twickenham is not necessarily an advantage – Argentina have supporters all over the world,” said Kolisi. “But wherever we’ve gone, South Africans have come out to back us. Hopefully it’ll be the same this weekend.”
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