Argentina’s hopes of making their first World Cup final were dashed at the hands of the All Blacks at the Stade de France on Friday, as the three-time champions handsomely won 44-6.
Argentina put up a decent fight in the first-half, but it was ultimately the second-ranked team in the world against the eighth, and it showed. The All Blacks were just more clinical in every department going.
Los Pumas huffed and puffed but failed to show the guile that is needed to unlock a world class defence, but there was certainly no lack of effort. Here’s how the players rated:
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15 Juan Cruz Mallia – 5
Had the impossible task of having to cover what seemed a 15-man overlap for the All Blacks’ opening try, and the scoreline suggests it was not a great day to be a fullback. Was solid under the high ball and showcased his pace in attack, but not a pleasant job.
14 Emiliano Boffelli – 4
Quiet from last week’s man of the match. Was not necessarily a liability, and took his kicks at goal, but more or less summed up Argentina’s helplessness to really trouble the All Blacks.
13 Lucio Cinti – 5
A solid game, but the All Blacks midfield gave him little room to shine.
12 Santiago Chocobares – 3
Missed more tackles than he made as Jordie Barrett ran riot. Not much more to say than that damning stat.
11 Mateo Carreras – 6
A livewire on the wing much as he was in this fixture in the Rugby Championship in July. Buzzed around the field, making metres, beating defenders and putting pressure on the opposition with his kick returns.
10 Santiago Carreras – 5
A No10 who loves to challenge the defensive line, and had made the most carries for his team this World Cup. He showed that endeavour again with some nice returns, but has to take responsibility for the Pumas’ lack of potency in the backline.
9 Gonzalo Bertranou – 3.5
Criminal lapse in concentration to let Aaron Smith in for a try within minutes of the second-half. That set the tone for the next 40 minutes, but he didn’t last much longer.
1 Thomas Gallo – 6.5
Was taken off on 68 minutes one tackle short of making 20. That’s monumental for a prop. Teamed up with his captain for a textbook hit in the first-half on Shannon Frizell. Great workrate for a big man.
2 Julián Montoya (c) – 5
Peaks and troughs from the captain. Dreadful execution at a lineout when Argentina had a promising attacking platform in the first-half, but followed that soon after with a textbook turnover when All Blacks were going through the gears in attack. Passion personified as usual.
3 Francisco Gómez Kodela – 3.5
In a game of few scrums while he was on, he struggled in those opportunities he had to make a mark. Had a shocking couple of minutes just before half-time- was pinged at a scrum then missed a tackle on Mark Telea whereby the All Blacks scored a phase later.
4 Guido Petti Pagadizabal – 4
Troubled the All Blacks lineout at times, and knows his role in the team to hit rucks. That was not enough today though.
5 Tomas Lavanini – 4
Hooked off at half-time, but that was not necessarily a reflection of his performance, where he made ten carries and nine tackles. Then again, only five metres from those ten carries.
6 Juan Martin Gonzalez – 4.5
Gonzalez popped up all over the park and did the dirty work in the rucks, but did not make the impact his back-row teammates did either side of the ball.
7 Marcos Kremer – 5.5
Doesn’t seem happy unless he’s trying to grind All Blacks into dust. Not only made a huge number of hits, but the ferocity of those hits must be noted as well.
8 Facundo Isa – 5.5
Challenged the All Blacks more than any other player in attack while on the field and comfortably made the most metres for his side in the pack.
Replacements
16 Agustín Creevy – 5
Busy after coming on for the final quarter, but the game was already over by then
17 Joel Sclavi – 4
Couldn’t get into the game at all for the final ten minutes.
18 Eduardo Bello – 4
Probably was not relishing the idea of coming on for the final 30 minutes with the All Blacks’ scrum on top.
19 Matias Alemanno – 3
Put in a similar shift to Lavanini in defence, but literally offered nothing going forward.
20 Rodrigo Bruni – 5
Got his hands on the ball a lot during his 15 minute cameo.
21 Lautaro Bazan Velez – 5
Who wants the job of trying to turn a game around when the All Blacks are cooking? No one.
22 Nicolas Sanchez – 4
The hero last week with his match-sealing try against Wales, but didn’t quite have the same impact this week.
23 Matías Moroni – 4
Ineffective after coming on for the final 15 minutes, but he can hardly be blamed.
