South Africa vs Argentina LIVE: Rugby Championship result and reaction as Springboks hold off Pumas
South Africa 22-21 Argentina: The Springboks withstood waves of pressure from the visitors to sign off the Rugby Championship with a home win
Flyhalf Manie Libbok scored a breakaway try against the run of play to secure South Africa a bruising 22-21 victory over Argentina and earn a second-place finish in the Rugby Championship at Ellis Park on Saturday.
The Springboks had to withstand heavy Argentine pressure, some of their own making through poor execution, but managed to grind out the win as they also scored tries through lock Eben Etzebeth and centre Damian de Allende.
Argentina were in the contest all the way but battled to break down the resolute home defence and got tries late on through wing Mateo Carreras and replacement Gonzalo Bertranou as the visitors pushed for what would have been a first ever win in Johannesburg.
New Zealand claimed the Rugby Championship trophy earlier on Saturday with a comprehensive 38-7 victory over Australia in Melbourne but the Boks’ victory sees them end second, with Argentina in third.
Follow live updates from South Africa vs Argentina in the final round of the Rugby Championship below
South Africa 15-9 Argentina, 47 minutes
Steven Kitshoff crawls towards Pablo Matera, the prop clearly off his feet and denying the flanker a chance to contest. Penalty, Argentina - and Santiago Carreras sets his sights on three more points from just beyond halfway.
South Africa 15-9 Argentina, 46 minutes
An excellent exit from Argentina, a couple of forthright forward carries and then a hooked clearance up to the ten-metre.
Speaking of hooked - Orie won’t get an opportunity to atone for his error, replaced by RG Snyman before Malcolm Marx throws the lineout.
South Africa 15-9 Argentina, 44 minutes
Argentina get their scrum set-up wrong, and Faf de Klerk taps and goes, chopped at the ankles as he leaps for the line. South Africa’s forwards form their punchy pods but Marvin Orie splatters a pass into the Argentina tackler wrapping the arms in front of him as the Pumas survive again.
South Africa 15-9 Argentina, 42 minutes
Staunch maul defence! That’s more like it from Argentina, Santiago Grondona and co. fighting through the massed South African shirts on to the ball, ensuring a turnover when it collapses under its own weight.
South Africa 15-9 Argentina, 41 minutes
Andrew Brace stops South Africa in their tracks with a blast on his whistle, the referee mishearing the call from his assistant - the penalty is against Julian Montoya, sporting a protective headband after being busted open early on, but Brace’s arm initially points in Argentina’s favour. He soon corrects the error, allowing Manie Libbok to find the corner.
Second half!
Manie Libbok gets things back underway in Johannesburg...and South Africa win the restart back!
HT: South Africa 15-9 Argentina
Argentina, to their credit, have fronted up typically well against the physical challenge - a few silly penalties have undermined an otherwise solid enough defensive performance. They are firmly in the contest, though, but probably need their backline to click after the interval in a way that it didn’t in that first 40 minutes.
It’s all over in Edinburgh, with Scotland getting their World Cup preparations up and running with a win over Italy. A bit scratchy for both sides at Murrayfield, but Ben Healy went well at fly-half for the hosts to further press his case for inclusion in Gregor Townsend’s travelling party.
HT: South Africa 15-9 Argentina
A half rather marred, I’m afraid, by two serious injuries that bookended it, Grant Williams and Lucas Paulos both taken off on a stretcher having appeared to have been knocked out. Fingers crossed for a speedy recovery for both men.
In between, it’s been physical and a little bit frantic, both teams short of the accuracy they might have liked - the home forwards have shown their strength, with Damian de Allende capitalising on his pack’s hard graft at the back of a maul. The centre added a second South African score after Eben Etzebeth had fulfilled the backs’ brief with a finish in the corner, the Springboks doing a bit of job swapping to take a narrow, but useful, lead back into the sheds.
South Africa 15-9 Argentina, 41 minutes
A magnificent try-saving tackle! Santiago Carreras was run over by Eben Etzebeth earlier but this is simply superb, the fly-half cornerflagging to perfection to deny Kurt-Lee Arendse what looked a certain score after South Africa had torched a trail up the touchline. Arendse’s feet are in touch before he leaps for the line.
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