Los Pumas: The ridiculous stats behind Juan Cruz Mallia’s ‘sensational’ showing against Australia
Juan Cruz Mallia scores in the 67-27 win over the Wallabies
After finding themselves 20-3 down in the first-half, Argentina regrouped to run riot in Santa Fe as they inflicted a heavy 67-27 defeat on the Wallabies – the biggest defeat in the country’s history.
A big part of their win was the stellar performance of fullback Juan Cruz Mallia, who put on a show with ball-in-hand to help guide his side to a record victory over Australia.
Here is an in-depth look at the stats behind his sensational performance.
Attacking masterclass
The Toulouse ace has been one of Argentina’s best performers this Rugby Championship and was yet again heavily involved in the attacking display in Santa Fe.
He took on his fair share of the load with ball-in-hand, racking up 93 meters from his 14 carries, an average of 6.6 meters per carry, and was only bested by Mateo Carreras in this department on the day.
Mallia also proved a handful for the Wallabies’ defence on the whole, as he was able to beat five defenders and also notched two line-breaks in the process.
Timeline: How the wheels disastrously came off for Wallabies in their record defeat to Argentina
It wasn’t just his running game which helped take the Pumas attack to new heights, as he also played a role as a distributor. He contributed 16 passes across his 80-minute stint, with half-backs Bertranou (60) and Albornoz (29) the only players to record more on the day.
This again proves how expansive Los Pumas looked to play, as Mallia was used as that extra back-field link to bring in the likes of Carreras and Delguy in the wide channels, and it also points to him being used as the second playmaker in the side.
Rounding off a brilliant attacking show, he grabbed himself two tries for his efforts.
Set-piece?
It might seem weird including this section in for a fullback, but Mallia actually won a lineout throw.
Now again, this might seem odd at first, but Argentina deployed a clever tactic to get further into the Wallabies half to start their attacks. We often see lineouts thrown over the 15 to an on-charging centre, but this weekend Los Pumas did this to their top playmakers.
Mallia and Albornoz were both targeted in this way to get the attack firing from a much better initial position, which in turn helped them get the upper hand in the game.
Kicking game to compliment Albornoz
Argentina’s kicking game was also a big reason why they were able to flip the game on its head, and yet again Mallia was at the heart of it. He notched five kicks in play, which complemented the nine kicks Albornoz made throughout the game too.
This again shows how Los Pumas used Mallia as that second playmaker role, and it took some of the load off Albornoz, who was making just his second start for his country.
He didn’t have to do too much defending if truth be told, but he chipped in with two tackles.
