- New Zealand 30 Argentina 38
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- International rugby
Shock loss to Argentina rocks All Blacks’ Rugby Championship hopes
Wellington: Veteran Agustin Creevy scored a try in the 69th minute as Argentina beat New Zealand 38-30 on Saturday in a thrilling Rugby Championship match which saw five lead changes in the second half.
The 39-year-old hooker came off the bench in the last quarter to score his seventh Test try and secure Argentina’s third win over New Zealand in 42 meetings.
Creevy’s try stemmed from a moment of abject panic among the All Blacks who, with two wild passes, retreated from near halfway to their own goal line where they conceded a five-metre scrum. The Pumas’ scrum held steady and Creevy drove the ball through the defence under the posts.
Gonzalo Bertranou celebrates Argentina’s upset defeat of the All Blacks.Credit: Getty Images
Santiago Carreras converted, then kicked a penalty in the 77th minute which made the margin eight points and snuffed out the possibility of an All Blacks rally. Carreras finished with seven goals from eight attempts for 18 points.
“I’m 39 and this is the first time for me winning a game in New Zealand,” an emotional Creevy said. “That is one game. But there is another game next week and that is the next thing. Winning two games in a row.”
The teams meet again at Auckland’s Eden Park next Saturday.
While the All Blacks scored tries through lock Sam Darry, center Anton Lienert-Brown and winger Mark Telea to lead 30-25 after 53 minutes, Argentina stuck with them all the way and gave their opponents no breathing space in the second half.
Carreras cut the New Zealand lead to two points with a penalty in the 55th and that created the opportunity for Argentina to snatch the win with a late try.
“I think we had a great preparation and we had a plan and stuck to the plan even when the score was not in our favour,” said Argentina captain Pablo Matera, who was a tower of strength for his team.
“We just kept going and got the win.”
Argentina dominated large parts of the match and the All Blacks fumbled for long periods in their own half. Few All Blacks teams have had a better preparation for domestic Tests than this one. But they seem to have made little progress under new head coach Scott Robertson.
New Zealand was disjointed, disorganised and made far too many errors to press Argentina or hold them out at the end.
“It’s hugely disappointing,” All Blacks captain Ardie Savea said. “We prepared all week to come here and get the win but it wasn’t our night tonight.
“All credit to Argentina, they stayed with us, put us under pressure and we couldn’t hold them.”
Discipline was Argentina’s only Achilles heel in the first half in which they matched the All Blacks’ two tries and after which they trailed 20-15. The Pumas conceded 10 penalties and received an official warning before half-time and that did more than anything to give the All Blacks a solid foothold in the half.
AP