Argentina player ratings: Emiliano Boffelli utterly world-class in historic Pumas win

Colin Newboult
Autumn Nations Cup rugby match - Test Match 2021, Italy vs Argentina, Treviso, Italy

November 13, 2021, Treviso, Italy: Treviso, Italy, Monigo stadium, November 13, 2021, Matias Moroni (Argentina) celebrates after scoring a try with teammate Emiliano Boffelli (Argentina) during Test Match 2021, Italy vs Argentina - Autumn Nations Cup rugby match (Credit Image: © Ettore Griffoni/LPS via ZUMA Press Wire)

Following their incredible 25-18 triumph over New Zealand at Orangetheory Stadium on Saturday, here’s the player ratings for Argentina.

15 Juan Cruz Mallia: Solid at the back and cleared his lines well. Overall, he did his job impressively. 7

14 Emiliano Boffelli: A world-class performance from Boffelli, who has been utterly outstanding in this year’s Rugby Championship. Kicked his goals with aplomb and was instrumental in their only try. 10

13 Matias Moroni: Put himself about defensively and marshalled that difficult 13 channel very well. 7

12 Matias Orlando: See Moroni in terms of his rearguard effort. 7

11 Lucio Cinti: Another to defend well against New Zealand’s dangerous runners but the quietest of the backline. 6

10 Santiago Carreras: We wondered whether he could control games at this level but he answered that question emphatically. Smart kicks in behind the All Blacks wings and full-back kept the hosts on the back foot. 8

9 Gonzalo Bertranou: Box-kicking was solid and service was decent, but it was a game mainly about what happened without the ball. 7

8 Pablo Matera: Stood up brilliantly and tackled his heart out. What a performance! 9

7 Marcos Kremer: A couple of brain fades once again in terms of discipline but otherwise magnificent. 8

6 Juan Martin Gonzalez: Some talent at the age of just 21 and brilliantly finished off Argentina’s try. 8

5 Tomas Lavanini: Is really finding control to go with his physicality. We had written off Lavanini following a poor couple of years but he’s shown he can be a good rugby player. 8

4 Matias Alemanno: Struggled a bit at the lineout against Whitelock but a superb defensive effort. 7

3 Joel Sclavi: Faltered in the scrum as they were consistently marched backwards. A big learning curve for the 28-year-old. 5

2 Julian Montoya (c): Had set-piece wobbles but more than made up for it with his other work around the field. Simply stunning at the breakdown once again. 9

1 Thomas Gallo: Like Sclavi, he will learn a lot from this encounter. Under the pump throughout his time on the field and ultimately struggled to make an impression. 5

Replacements: The props were a bit better in the scrum but they still conceded penalties, while the others failed to make too much impact. 5

READ MORE: New Zealand player ratings: Front five the only positive in abysmal team performance from Ian Foster’s men