ABs survive scare, Wallabies win three-in-a-row
THE All Blacks vs Springboks clash in Townsville was special. The Test was not only the 100th meeting between two fierce and ancient rivals, but it was a battle between the world’s number one ranked side and the 2019 RWC champion.
The 2021 Rugby Championship title was also at stake, and the battle could have had huge bearing on the Rugby Championship had the Springboks beaten the ABs. However, as predicted by rugby pundits, the ABs denied the Springboks at the death, and remain unbeaten after five rounds
The ABs narrowly justified their number one world ranking with a hard-fought 19-17 win over the world champions to secure the Rugby Championship title with a match to spare.
According to The Guardian, the 100th Test did not disappoint and it was not until full-back Jordie Barrett kicked his fourth penalty two minutes from time that the ABs took the 19-17 lead. ABs wing Will Jordan and his counterpart S’bu Nkosi scored early tries, but from then on it was a kicking duel between Handre Pollard and Jordie Barrett to decide the spoils. Ultimately, Barrett’s 14 points from the tee were enough to give them a 12th southern hemisphere Test championship title and a 10th successive Test win over the Boks.
However, the ABs will rue the number of errors they made, especially the dropped balls from the kicks that the Boks sent in the air. The ABs crumpled under pressure, and the boys were penalised. They rushed play. There was lack of communication at times, and instead of taking three points, they went for the line-out, losing valuable possession. We were at the Fiji Marriott Resort, and we had so much to cheer for, but I must admit, that the ABs were lucky to come out with a win and four valuable points. Springboks captain Siya Kolisi, in an exclusive interview said, “It was tough, it was an awesome contest and it was a fair contest. It’s been a tough two weeks, but I’m proud of the way the boys stood up today.”
In reply, ABs captain Ardie Savea said, “We knew this game was going to come down to the wire, it was tit-for-tat out there. They put us under a lot of pressure. I’m just relieved, really.” After the ABs won the 100th Test and the Rugby Championship, the Wallabies hopes drowned, but they put up a brave performance to down Argentina.
The Wallabies produced a commanding 27-8 win over Argentina in front of a huge crowd.
Dave Rennie’s brigade overcame a second-half fight-back as they secured their third win in a row, the first time they achieved this feat in four years. They got off to the perfect start as tries to Reece Hodge and Samu Kerevi gave them a 17-3 lead at the break. However, Argentina hit back through Julian Montoya, as they searched for their first win of the tournament. As Mario Ledesma’s side fought for a way back into the contest, Marcos Kremer was sin-binned and Andrew Kellaway scored a sizzling try which helped the Wallabies seal the victory.
The win vaulted the Wallabies into second-place in the Rugby Championship over the Springboks. Wallaby fans are relieved, and Rennie seems to have finally found the medicine to their woes.
This week will conclude the 2021 Rugby Championship, and I look forward to the Test against the Springboks. Congratulations to the mighty ABs for yet another win, and for proving critics wrong!
Finally, I commend our hard working and dedicated sports team of Maikeli Seru, Jo Makaba and Waisale Koroiwasa for the fantastic build-up to Saturday night’s brutal battles!