Argentina player ratings: New option at 10 makes his mark while ‘superior’ centre fails to ‘exhibit class’
Argentina player ratings: New option at ten makes his mark while 'superior' centre fails to 'exhibit class'
Argentina defeated a valiant Wales 28-52 at the Principality Stadium on Sunday as the two sides kicked off their Autumn Nations Series campaigns.
Here is how we rated the Argentina players.
Backs
15 Santiago Carreras: Tried to go for broke on a kick to the corner early on from a penalty, but sent it dead – this was his only mistake of the game. He looked sharp, jinking in and out of the flailing Welsh defence, using all his devastating footwork to threaten every time he touched the ball. Had a perfect kicking display from the tee. 7
14 Bautista Delguy: On his first action, he showed great pace to latch onto a kick from Geronimo Prisciantelli, but failed to catch the falling ball. His excitement factor only rose from there, creating utter havoc each time he received the ball. Took his try well, stepping three men in the process. 7
13 Justo Piccardo: Got through a lot of work in both attack and defence. Although he wasn’t always the most visible man on the field, his ability to link up with those around him made his side all the more difficult to read. 7
12 Santiago Chocobares: Arguably one of the greatest centres in the world right now, but he failed to exhibit any of his superior class in this fixture. Struggled to get into the game and had a very limited impact. 5
11 Mateo Carreras: His hot-stepping performance would have come as no surprise to those who had enjoyed his time at Newcastle. As always, he was near impossible to stop one-on-one, as he tormented a Welsh defence unprepared to deal with such a drastic change of direction. Good option to kick for Prisciantelli’s try, and he took his try well, calmly stepping the onrushing Welsh defender. 8
10 Geronimo Prisciantelli: A clever kick to the corner in the early stages signalled what was to come. The scorer of two impressive tries, he tormented Wales throughout, using his footwork to get onto the outside foot of the defence, allowing space for his outside backs. Notably put in a clever cross-field kick to set Delguy up for his try. 8
9 Simon Benitez Cruz: Took a major hit from Alex Mann, but just minutes later, he got his revenge, darting over from close range to extend Argentina’s lead. Threw a very suspect pass over Carreras’ head and into touch, and later one that missed two people, putting his side under pressure. 6
Forwards
8 Joaquin Oviedo: He did his job without any real fuss, making hard metres with the carry and using that 18 stone frame to provide real power to sure up the scrum. 7
7 Juan Martin Gonzalez: Started with a great offload to put M. Carreras through a gap down the left wing. Would have been embarrassed later when he dropped the ball to give Wales possession in the Pumas 22. Was solid in the lineout. 6
6 Pablo Matera: Started the game on a sour note, throwing the ball into touch due to an overconfident one-handed offload. He didn’t allow his confidence to be knocked, however, as he later caught the ball from the kick-off, stepped through the Welsh line, and then put in an audacious kick to the corner for M. Carreras to collect and score. He was also involved in plenty throughout, making a solid impact on the match. 7
5 Marcos Kremer: Guilty of conceding a penalty that Jac Morgan would eventually score from, and struggled to make much of an impact with ball in hand. Defensively, he did put his body on the line, however, making an impressive 13 tackles. 6
4 Guido Petti: Like his lock partner, he struggled to stand out, but remained solid. 6
3 Pedro Delgado: Powered through at the first scrum to win a free-kick and then stormed over for the first try from close range. Looked solid throughout, helping to sure up a perfect scrum. 7
2 Julian Montoya: A perfect lineout. A perfect scrum. A huge work-rate as always, making 20 tackles. A brilliantly simple performance. 8
1 Mayco Vivas: Like his prop teammate, he ensured that the scrum worked perfectly and didn’t put a foot wrong. 7