Jaguares survive Blues siege to win Super Rugby thriller
BUENOS AIRES: Argentina’s Jaguares won a post-siren scrum against the head on their fivemetre line to edge the Auckland Blues 23-19 Saturday in a Super Rugby round three thriller.
Trailing by 11 points with seven minutes remaining, the New Zealanders had got back into contention when fl anker Dalton Papalii scored a try that fly-half Otere Black converted.
That cut the gap to four points and opened the possibility of a first win this season for the Blues after losses to the Canterbury Crusaders and the Coastal Sharks.
They laid siege and their hopes heightened when the Argentines were penalised resulting in a fivemetre scrum with a Blues put-in at a tense Estadio Jose Amalfitani in Buenos Aires.
However, a concerted push by the home side enabled them to secure possession and as the ball was hastily booted into touch, the fi nal whistle sounded.
A dramatic conclusion was fitting as there was nothing to choose between the teams in a contest that could have swung either way on a balmy night in the Argentine capital. “Congratulations to my team for their outstanding defence throughout the match,” said Jaguares skipper and centre Matias Orlando, deputising for injured Jeronimo de la Fuente.
“We came under a lot of pressure at different stages of each half and our refusal to concede was truly inspirational. I believe we deserved the victory over very good opponents.”
Success was achieved despite the blow of losing star hooker Agustin Creevy midway through the opening half with a suspected rib injury.