English: South African rugby union player Fourie du Preez during 2007 Rugby World Cup quater-final against Fiji, that taken place in Marseille. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
The Springboks got their Rugby Championship campaign off to a good start by trouncing Argentina 73-11 at the FNB Stadium in Johannesburg on Saturday.
The Boks were rampant as they scored nine tries to one for their biggest winning margin over the South Americans to sound a warning that they want to stake a claim for the title in this year’s competition.
They were not only impressive on attack but deprived Los Pumas of possession, while their defensive line proved to be impenetrable.
The match, played as part of the Nelson Mandela Sport and Culture Day, had little entertainment value in the opening 10 minutes.
However, Springbok flyhalf Morne Steyn converted two penalties in this period to hand his side a six-point lead.
At the quarter-hour mark Argentine captain Felipe Contepomi added to the scoreline with a successful conversion.
The two placekickers exchanged two more penalties between them, with only three points separating the two sides.
However, the momentum swung in the hosts’ favour when a deliberate knock down by hooker Eusebio Guinazo metres from the line earned him a yellow card and a penalty try against his team.
Steyn converted the try to extend the Boks’ lead to 10 points after 27 minutes of play.
The try sparked the Boks into action as they added another five-pointer six minutes later when JJ Engelbrecht fielded a Willie le Roux grubber kick to canter through for the try.
Steyn converted and added another penalty conversion in the 38th minute which saw the Boks go into the change room leading 26-6.
Shortly after the restart the Boks showed their intent with a driving maul from a lineout that saw Adriaan Strauss crossing the whitewash for the their third try of the match, with Steyn converting.
Four minutes later Willem Alberts scored the Boks’ bonus-point try, while captain Jean de Villiers added the fourth a minute later as he intercepted an Argentine ball from the kickoff to find an open goalline, with Steyn converting both tries.
Playing in his first match in more than a year, Fourie du Preez also got onto the score sheet in the 62nd minute.
In the 66th minute Bryan Habana scored the team’s seventh try to bring up their 66th point in the match, with only six points against them.
Four minutes before the end of the match Bismarck du Plessis closed South Africa’s try-scoring account, with Steyn finding his target once again.
The Argentineans had the final say of the match as Contepomi got over the whitewash to add some respectability to the score sheet. – Sapa
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