Argentina player ratings: Pablo Matera’s ‘all-time great’ shift inspires Los Pumas to a famous victory over the All Blacks
Our Los Pumas ratings following another famous victory over the All Blacks.
Following their stunning 38-30 win over the All Blacks in Wellington, here is how we rated the Argentina players in their Rugby Championship opener.
Los Pumas player ratings v the All Blacks
15 Juan Cruz Mallia: A handful of mishaps in the backfield shouldn’t detract too much from another fine performance by the Los Pumas number 15. 8
14 Matias Moroni: The back impressed on defence making 10 tackles while proving to be tough customer with ball in hand too as he made 60 metres. 7
13 Lucio Cinti: Less busy on defence than his fellow midfielder but he linked up well with his fellow backs and gave a good account of himself up against Anton Lienert-Brown. 7
12 Santiago Chocobares: Reproduced his outstanding form for Toulouse in the Argentine blue and white as he gained over 30 metres, beating three defenders and racked up a massive 16 tackles – the most by a back in the game. He is some talent. 9
11 Mateo Carreras: The winger brilliantly pounced on Damian McKenzie’s torrid clearance kick and proved to be a real handful for the All Blacks‘ defence. He also managed to keep Sevu Reece pretty quiet and made all seven of his attempted tackles. 7
10 Santiago Carreras: He converted all seven of his shots at goal and controlled the Pumas attack well throughout the encounter while defending rather well too. He could have done better in stopping Sam Darry’s try but otherwise, he was key to another historic win. 8
9 Gonzalo Bertranou: The lack of scrums in the first hour of the match was a testament to the accuracy of the scrum-half’s passing while he kicked well out of hand too and went the distance in a gruelling Test match. 8
Full house for Pablo Matera
8 Juan Martin Gonzalez: The superb Gonzalez missed the series against France but stunningly returned to the starting line-up with a marvellous performance. The Pumas loose trio was crucial in the victory with the Saracens star enjoying a wonderful outing. 9
7 Marcos Kremer: What a shift from the brilliant flanker who hammered into the All Blacks’ attackers in a truly physically brutal performance, much like his outings in stunning wins in Sydney and Christchurch against the men in black. He was the top tackler once again and excellent in all facets of the game. 9
6 Pablo Matera (c): In the 2020 victory over the All Blacks, Matera demanded that New Zealand “show some respect” and today earned it once again with another all-time great performance on his return to the captaincy. The entire back-row was stupendous but Matera was a different beast. A titan on defence, glorious over the ball and outrageous with ball in hand. He was the best player on the park, adding another worldie to his incredible catalogue of stellar performances particularly in the big matches. 10
5 Pedro Rubiolo: A huge defensive shift from the exciting talent in the second-row. Gave a good account of himself in all facets of the game. 8
4 Franco Molina: Finished off a smartly worked try from a lineout which was the highlight of his game. He was effective with ball in hand but did have a few lapses in defence. 6
Argentina claim shock victory over All Blacks as Scott Robertson left with plenty to ponder
3 Eduardo Bello: The tighthead prop went his entire 47-minute shift without packing down once in the scrum – a real testament to the quality of the skills on display. Without needing to do his main job, Bello was otherwise solid. 6
2 Ignacio Ruiz: Filled in manfully in the absence of the excellent Julian Montoya and threw a wonderful dart for Molina’s try. Put in a tidy defensive performance in a shift that was befitting of the legends that have donned the Pumas’ number two jumper before him. 7
1 Thomas Gallo: Held his own in the very few scrums he was involved in but the compact loosehead’s game is all about work-rate and man did he deliver once again. 16 out of 16 tackles is a tally that any Test back-rower would be pleased with but a mighty effort for front-row. 8
Replacements: The evergreen Agustin Creevy popped up for a crucial try only adding more spark to his glittering career, he also claimed a trademark turnover. The Pumas needed their bench to step up in the latter stages to seal the win and they did just that. 9
