Pumas star Boffelli wary of wounded All Blacks
Buenos aires: argentina back line star Emiliano Boffelli wishes New Zealand had won their last Rugby Championship match, instead of suffering a stunning home defeat by South Africa.
His believes the All Blacks will now be even more desperate for a fifth-round victory in Buenos Aires on Saturday against South American opponents they have never lost to.
Apart from getting back on a winning trail they are so familiar with, New Zealand can seal a sixth southern hemisphere championship title if they pull off a bonus-point victory.
“Congratulations to the Springboks on their victory,” said Boffelli, a winger converted into an equally impressive full-back when Joaquin Tuculet was sidelined indefinitely.
“But they did us no favours,” he added after a training session ahead of the fifth-round clash at Estadio Jose Amalfitani, a venue used predominantly for football.
“I wanted New Zealand to come here having beaten South Africa because it is so seldom that they lose two matches in a row.”
New Zealand last suffered successive Test losses in 2011 when they were beaten 18-5 in South Africa and 25-20 in Australia.
“To overcome the All Blacks you have to play a perfect game and hope they do not,” admitted the tall 23-year-old.
“Focus is a key factor when you are playing against the best Rugby team in the world. We must strive for perfection in order to beat them for the first time.”
Boffelli has formed a dynamic attacking trio with wingers Bautista Delguy and Ramiro Moyano this year, but a rib injury rules out the latter this weekend.