Following a 41-24 defeat to the All Blacks in the Rugby Championship clash at the Estadio Mario Alberto Kempes on Saturday, here are the player ratings for Argentina.
15 Juan Cruz Mallía: Struggled to get into the game and ultimately failed to make much of an impression on the match in a disappointing evening’s work. 5
14 Rodrigo Isgró: Scored Argentina’s first try and was a threat in the air. He also carried nicely on a couple of occasions, but that was about it. 6
13 Lucio Cinti: A fine game from the talented centre. Can play wing but he is able to get into the game more at 13 and he was constantly involved. 7
12 Santiago Chocobares: Rested for the England series but they were glad to have him back for this clash as he was a physical presence throughout. 7
11 Bautista Delguy: Some really nice things with the kick-chase and slippery in contact, but he wasn’t able to get his hands on the ball enough in space. 6
The best in the world?
10 Tomás Albornoz: Just an outstanding player who they really missed against England. Albornoz was constantly involved, even carrying hard into traffic and making it over the gain line. Has a decent claim to being the best fly-half in the world at the moment as there are not many playing at his level. 8
9 Gonzalo García: Hesitant far too often and that affected the team. The All Blacks’ rush defence was impressive, but the scrum-half did not help matters. 5
8 Joaquín Oviedo: Some big bruising carries, especially in the second half to help the hosts back into the contest. It was another good outing from the try-scoring back-rower. 7
7 Marcos Kremer: Started off like a freight train but then went down and looked in agony. Managed to carry on but, to be perfectly honest, he wasn’t quite the same player after that collision. 6
Another superb Matera effort
6 Pablo Matera: Magnificent yet again. The Argentina legend was a ubiquitous presence around the field whether it was carrying, tackling or jackalling. Constantly made an impact. 8
5 Pedro Rubiolo: Abrasive in contact as the Argentines physically took it to the All Blacks, but there were some technical errors as the set-piece struggled. 6
4 Franco Molina: See Rubiolo. They are an exciting and talented lock pairing, but there are still plenty of things to work on. 6
3 Pedro Delgado: Still inexperienced at this level and it showed as he faltered in the scrum against the powerful New Zealand front five. 4
2 Julián Montoya (c): Still performing at an incredibly high level. Was reliable in the lineout and also a presence in the loose. 6
1 Mayco Vivas: A bit of a shocker from the loosehead. For starters he was annihilated by Fletcher Newell in the scrum while he also received a yellow card for a stupid breakdown offence. 3
Replacements: The props shored up the scrum and there was good impact in the loose from Guido Petti and particularly Juan Martin Gonzalez, but the lineout was a shambles after Montoya went off. That cost them the chance of building on their impressive start to the second period and potentially claiming an unlikely win. 5
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