This weekend saw Round 2 of The Rugby Championship.

In johannesburg, South Africa it was heart-break for the Springboks again, 2nd week in a row, this time losing in the dying minutes against a better conditiond and fitter All Blacks side, by 20 / 27, with All Blacks capatin Richie McCaw doing the damage to snatch the lead from the South Africans with only 6 minutes to go in the match.

In Mendoza, Argentinia, the Wallabies led 8 / 6 at halftime before tuning in all the screws and beating Los Pumas comfortably by 34 / 9, also earning their bonus point for tries in the process.

As a result of the Round 2 results, the All Blacks and Wallabies are joint leaders of The Rugby Championship Log, with 2 wins apiece, whereas the Springboks and Los Pumas are still winless in the Competition, with the Springboks on a paltry 2 Log points and Los Pumas still not out of the starting gates, on 0 Log Points.

In 2015 there is of course only 3 Rounds in total, in the abbreviated version of the prime Southern Hemisphere international competition due to this year being a Rugby World Cup year. In this shortened version of the competition, where in stead of the normal double Round of matches by every side against the other sides, there is only a single Round of matches by every side against each of the other nations.

Round 3 is only in a fortnight, where the focus will be on the Bledisloe clash between the Wallabies and All Blacks for this year’s overall title.

The Springboks dominated most of the 1st half but at the break the scores were still tied on 10 / 10 and later on 17 / 17 before South Africa took a slender 20 / 17 lead and held that lead untill 6 minutes from time, whereafter the All Blacks showed their class and superior fitness and better bench selections to add 10 further points and running out 7-point winners.

All is not lost for the Springboks and one feels that they showed some quality rugby 2 weeks in a row, but they will surely now realize that their overall conditioning, fitness as well as the impact their bench is supposed to have in the vital Rugby World Cup during September and October still need a massive amount of work if they are to stand a proper chance of winning the world showpiece in 2015.

The All Blacks once again appear to be massive favourites to not only win theis year’s Rugby Championship but to also go on to clinch the Rugby World Cup title in October.

Argentina seem to be dogged by the same “Illness” that the Springboks are suffering from, as they also seem incapable of ending games strong enough and also tend to kick tactically poorly, which invariably results in scores against them in the latter stages of games when defences are no longer as tight as in the beginning of matches.

The Wallabies are building up nicely towards the Rugby World Cup, having first narrowly dispatched the Springboks week before last and now comforably beating Los Pumas on the weekend. They managed to score 2 quick-fire tries towards the end of the clash in Argentina, first by Tevita Kuridrani and then barely 3 minutes later one by Adam Ashley-Cooper (to earn them the bonus point for tries) to hammer the nails in properly against the Pumas.

Springboks (10) 20 / 27 (10) All Blacks:

A late Richie McCaw try helped the All Blacks clinch a closely-fought clash with the Springboks at Emirates Airline Park (Ellis Park), Johannesburg on Saturday, winning 27 / 20.

New Zealand have become masters of the fast finish and it was fitting that McCaw – in what was probably his last Test on South African soil – landed the killer blow against their fiercest rivals.

With the Springboks having crossed the Indian Ocean twice in the last fortnight, the last 20 minutes needed a big effort, but – as was the case last week against Australia – the Springboks faded at the death of what was a thrilling game and an epic Test match.

After being outscored 3 tries to 2, the home side will rue a number of close calls having had their noses in front for most of the game.

The scores were locked at 10 / 10 at the interval as Willie le Roux’s early try was cancelled out by a Ben Smith try.

South Africa had led for almost the entire half and looked in control but – in typical fashion – the All Blacks struck with the last play of the half to level matters. It was sign of things to come.

 

 

Quick-fire tries from Jesse Kriel and Dane Coles early in the 2nd half kept the contest tight before McCaw’s late try snatched victory for the world champions.

After a poor tactical kicking display in Brisbane last week, South African coach Heyneke Meyer was looking for huge improvement but he will have mixed feelings as the Springboks mixed the excellent with the mediocre when kicking from hand.

It took the Springboks less than 2 minutes to cheaply hand possession over to the All Blacks with a poorly directed box kick. The ensuing ruck saw the visitors awarded a penalty, which Lima Sopoaga duly slotted for his 1st Test points. The home crowd feared the worst.

However, a much better kick from Ruan Pienaar was at the origin of the 1st try. Bismarck du Plessis caught Kieran Read in possession after Israel Dagg’s pass, forcing the turnover. The ball was sent wide and inside again by Jesse Kriel to Willie le Roux and the fullback split the outnumbered Kiwi defenders to race home. Handré Pollard added the easy extras.

The All Blacks had a golden opportunity to strike back, but Conrad Smith couldn’t hang on to the snap pass from Aaron Smith, who had decided to run from a penalty dead in front of the posts.

The Springboks were taking no such risks, and Pollard extended the lead with a penalty for offside play, meaning the hosts led 10 / 3 at the end of the 1st quarter.

The visitors were clearly intent on keeping the pace of the game as high as possible and avoiding set pieces wherever possible, robbing the Springboks of attacking chances from lineouts, with a few quick throw-ins.

Pollard fell short with a shot at goal from inside his own half before Sopoaga was also off target with a much easier effort.

 

 

The home side looked set to take a 7-point gap into the break but a brilliant run up the middle of the field from Lima Sopoaga changed the complexion of the game as Ben Smith collected his fly-half’s pass to cross for a well-worked try. Sopoaga added the conversion to draw his team level at the break.

A knee injury meant that Springbok tighthead prop Jannie du Plessis did not emerge from the tunnel for the 2nd half, giving Vincent Koch his 1st taste of Test rugby. Francois Louw lasted just 2 minutes after the restart and home-town boy Warren Whiteley was given a huge welcome.

Jesse Kriel backed up his brilliant try last week with another great score as he split Ma’a Nonu and Conrad Smith off a Pollard pop pass to sprint over. Pollard added the conversion as the home crowd roared their approval.

The counter-punch from the All Blacks didn’t take long to follow though, as Dane Coles showed incredible pace for a hooker to charge over under the sticks. Sopoaga’s extras meant it was all-square with a half-an-hour to play.

Beauden Barrett was given a run at fullback as Israel Dagg was replaced but it was the visitors’ forwards who were in the firing line.

The TMO ruled that Lood de Jager had placed the ball millimetres short of the line – much to the hosts bemusement – but Pollard was able to put the Springboks back in front with a penalty as the All Blacks gave away a penalty under huge pressure on their line.

A break from Willie le Roux put the visitors under more pressure and Sam Whitelock was sent to the bin for his attempts to kill the attack. The Springboks opted for the scrum rather than 3 easy points, but Eben Etzebeth was held up after a big shove for the line. A knock-on from Vincent Koch – who had blood streaming from his face – meant that they failed at their 2nd attempt as precious points were left by the wayside.

The Springboks breathed a huge sigh of relief as a long-range shot from Sopoaga fell short of goal, allowing the Springboks to take the slim lead into the final 15 minutes.

Koch’s trip to the nurse’s office meant the hosts no longer had a specialist tighthead (although Trevor Nyakane easily plays both sides of the front row), resulting in the referee calling uncontested scrums in the last 10 minutes.

 

 

Brodie Retallick was held up over the line but New Zealand was awarded a penalty and they opted to go for the corner, where Richie McCaw ghosted through the middle of the lineout to bump Ruan Pienaar out the way to score an all-too-easy try in the 73rd minute. Sopoaga’s 3rd conversion of the night put the men in black 4 points ahead, forcing the home side to chase a late try.

But it was Sopoaga who slammed home the final nail, sending over a penalty in the last minute.

 

Man of the match:

A mention for Lood de Jager, who worked tirelessly but Charles Piutau booked his ticket to the Rugby World Cup with a faultless display on defence and an electric performance on attack.

 

Moment of the match:

How do they always do it? McCaw’s try was another example of New Zealand’s clinical execution as they came back from behind once again.

 

Villain of the match:

No nasty stuff to report.

 

Scorers:

Springboks:

• Tries: Willie le Roux (1), Jesse Kriel (1)
• Conversions: Handré Pollard (2)
• Penalties: Handré Pollard (2)

All Blacks:

• Tries: Ben Smith (1), Dane Coles (1), Richie McCaw (1)
• Conversions: Lima Sopoaga (3)
• Penalties: Lima Sopoaga (2)

 

Teams:

Springboks: 15 Willie le Roux, 14 Cornal Hendricks, 13 Jesse Kriel, 12 Damian de Allende, 11 Bryan Habana, 10 Handré Pollard, 9 Ruan Pienaar, 8 Schalk Burger (Captain), 7 Francois Louw, 6 Heinrich Brüssow, 5 Lood de Jager, 4 Eben Etzebeth, 3 Jannie du Plessis, 2 Bismarck du Plessis, 1 Tendai Mtawarira
Replacements: 16 Adriaan Strauss, 17 Trevor Nyakane, 18 Vincent Koch, 19 Flip van der Merwe, 20 Warren Whiteley, 21 Cobus Reinach, 22 Pat Lambie, 23 Lionel Mapoe.

All Blacks: 15 Israel Dagg, 14 Ben Smith, 13 Conrad Smith, 12 Ma’a Nonu, 11 Charles Piutau, 10 Lima Sopoaga, 9 Aaron Smith, 8 Kieran Read, 7 Richie McCaw (Captain), 6 Liam Messsam, 5 James Broadhurst, 4 Brodie Retallick, 3 Owen Franks, 2 Dane Coles, 1 Tony Woodcock
Replacements: 16 Codie Taylor, 17 Wyatt Crockett, 18 Ben Franks, 19 Sam Whitelock, 20 Victor Vito, 21 TJ Perenara, 22 Beauden Barrett, 23 Malakai Fekitoa.

Venue: Emirates Airline Park (Ellis Park), Johannesburg
Referee: Jérôme Garcès
Assistant Referees: Romain Poite, Leighton Hodges
TMO: Graham Hughes

 

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Los Pumas (6) 9 / 34 (8) Wallabies:

Australia’s Wallabies outscored the Argentinian Pumas by 4 tries to none, gaining revenge for their 2014 defeat by winning 34 / 9 in Mendoza on Saturday.

Adam Ashley-Cooper scored a try with the final play of the match to secure the bonus point for the Wallabies, whose bench played a major role once again.

Argentina often sparkled individually but never showed enough control or composure when it mattered most, committing basic errors that undermind their efforts.

For a while the Wallabies were sucked into an attritional battle without making much progress. However a special try for Dean Mumm, the Australia lock who recently returned from a stint in England with Exeter Chiefs, proved to be a finishing blow that killed off the hopes of their hosts.

Soft penalties meant that Australia made harder work of the contest than required, particularly with off the ball incidents that cancelled out their penalty advantages.

Quade Cooper’s Yellow Card in the 2nd half was inevitable and if they leak penalties against the All Blacks in 2 weeks time the Wallabies will be in real trouble.

 

 

Despite that the Wallabies greater structure shone through as Los Pumas relied on moments of individual magic, especially from the livewire fullback Santiago Cordero, to make any real progress without aimlessly kicking the ball away. After the thrilling finish to last year’s Rugby Championship, with their 1st win in the competition, Argentina has started 2015 very slowly.

Israel Folau was lucky not to see Yellow for a mid-air challenge on Nicolás Sánchez in the opening minutes, with a penalty against the Wallabies ending a dominant opening period from the visitors where they enjoyed 90 % possession.

Australia lost Matt Toomua to an early concussion, forcing a re-shuffle in the backline, with Quade Cooper replacing him as Sánchez pushed a long-range drop goal attempt narrowly wide.

More loose kicking then cost Sánchez and his side when Folau returned 1 with interest, combining with Bernard Foley to release Joe Tomane down the touchline for the opening try.

Excitement was never far away when Cordero was involved for the home side but the Pumas lacked that final touch to finish off some promising early moments.

They were lucky the Wallabies persisted to squander their advantages, like when Will Skelton saw a penalty reversed for grabbing a player around the neck at the bottom of a ruck.

Inaccuracies from both sides meant the Wallabies still led 5 / 0 approaching the half-hour mark, before Sánchez knocked over his 1st penalty to put the hosts on the scoresheet.

The Wallabies though persisted to threaten with the ball in hand, a show-and-go from the captain Stephen Moore being a highlight as the Wallabies forced a penalty out of the defence which Foley was unable to convert.

Argentina had to control the scrum to have a chance of winning and after a quiet week against New Zealand they looked to have rediscovered their rhythm, with James Slipper feeling the heat as a result.

Foley rediscovered his accuracy to add a 1st penalty but Sánchez instantly responded with the final act of the half to leave Australia ahead by 2 points at halftime, leading 8 / 6.

 

 

A 2nd penalty from Foley right after halftime stretched the visitors advantage to 5 points, even if it wasn’t the cleanest of strikes from the Waratahs flyhalf whose form off the tee is becoming a minor concern.

The Pumas weren’t short of attacks but the Wallabies, more often than not through the excellent David Pocock, were always there ready to turn over possession or slow them down. Appropriately the openside flank put in an impressive run down the wing, before being bundled into touch by the cover defence.

Another penalty from Foley gave the Wallabies a comfortable 8-point lead as they welcomed back Mumm from the bench for his 1st Test appearance since 2010.

The Pumas received some reward for the efforts of Cordero and Juan Pablo Socino when Sánchez added this 3rd penalty coming up to the fourth quarter, making it 14 / 9 and keeping Los Pumas in the hunt.

Mumm though crushed those hopes with a barnstorming run of his own down the touchline, fending off tacklers to score a fine solo try in the corner and open up the gap to 10 points.

Indiscipline however kept pulling the Wallabies back into the game, with Cooper heading to the sin-bin for a high tackle, but a crucial lineout steal from Rob Simmons prevented Argentina from attacking through their rolling maul.

Foley curled in a 4th 3-pointer to make it 22 / 9, putting the result almost beyond doubt with 10 minutes to go as the Pumas’ attack failed to make in-roads, capping off a frustrating night for their supporters.

 

 

There was still time for the Wallabies to add a 3rd try – Tevita Kuridrani the man to go over for his 2nd score in a week, after a good pass over the top from Foley and the bonus point try wasn’t far behind.

Ashley-Cooper was the man to finish it off but only after great input from Kurtley Beale, on his 50th cap, and Folau to make sure the Wallabies head back home with all 5 Log points.

The bonus point also moves them level on points with New Zealand at the top of The Rugby Championship, ahead of their meeting on 8 August.

 

Scorers:

Los Pumas:

• Penalties: Nicolás Sánchez (3)

Wallabies:

• Tries: Joe Tomane (1), Dean Mumm (1), Tevita Kuridrani (1), Adam Ashley-Cooper (1)
• Conversions: Bernard Foley (1)
• Penalties: Bernard Foley (4)
• Yellow Card: Quade Cooper

 

Teams:

Los Pumas: 15 Santiago Cordero, 14 Gonzalo Camacho, 13 Matías Moroni, 12 Juan Pablo Socino, 11 Juan Imhoff, 10 Nicolás Sánchez, 9 Martín Landajo, 8 Facundo Isa, 7 Juan Martín Fernández Lobbe, 6 Javier Ortega Desio, 5 Tomás Lavanini, 4 Manuel Carizza, 3 Ramiro Herrera, 2 Agustín Creevy (Captain), 1 Marcos Ayerza
Replacements: 16 Santiago Iglesias Valdez, 17 Nahuel Tetaz Chaparro, 18 Matías Díaz, 19 Matías Alemanno, 20 Leonardo Senatore, 21 Tomás Cubelli, 22 Santiago González Iglesias, 23 Lucas González Amorosino.

Wallabies: 15 Israel Folau, 14 Adam Ashley-Cooper, 13 Tevita Kuridrani, 12 Matt Toomua, 11 Joe Tomane, 10 Bernard Foley, 9 Nick Phipps, 8 Ben McCalman, 7 David Pocock, 6 Scott Fardy, 5 Rob Simmons, 4 Will Skelton, 3 Greg Holmes, 2 Stephen Moore (Captain), 1 James Slipper
Replacements: 16 Tatafu Polota-Nau, 17 Scott Sio, 18 Sekope Kepu, 19 Dean Mumm, 20 Michael Hooper, 21 Nic White, 22 Quade Cooper, 23 Kurtley Beale.

Referee: Jaco Peyper (South Africa)
Assistant Referees: Chris Pollock (New Zealand), Stuart Berry (South Africa)
TMO: Shaun Veldsman (South Africa)