Five-try blast as All Blacks hit No.1 spot
NEW ZEALAND snatched South Africa’s world No.1 ranking and placed one hand on the Rugby Championship trophy after thrashing Argentina for the second time in a week.
The All Blacks’ 36-13 bonus-point victory in front of 38,000 fans at Lang Park, Brisbane, extended their lead to 10 points over the secondplaced Springboks in the table while knocking Argentina and Australia out of the tournament.
South Africa will need to defeat New Zealand twice and pile on the tries in their last two matches to earn bonus points to have any hope of stealing the silverware.
The scale of the Springboks’ task was underlined as a second-string All Blacks team ran in five tries to notch their fourth win from four matches in a dominant campaign.
Coach Ian Foster said:
“We obviously made a few changes and to keep our performance going with the new combination was pleasing.”
Lock Tupou Vaa’i grabbed two tries, while Patrick Tuipulotu, scrum-half TJ Perenara and hooker Samisoni Taukei’aho also scored five-pointers.