South Africa wore red in Salta but it didn’t affect their performance as they won for the second week in succession, this time with a bonus point 41-23 victory. The win follows their 37-15 victory over Argentina in Port Elizabeth.
The Springboks wore red to celebrate 25 years of rugby unity in South Africa, in a move that the majority of fans were none to pleased about. Regardless, they picked up their fifth win in a row, building nicely ahead of their upcoming meetings with Australia and New Zealand.
Flanker Siya Kolisi had another stand-out performance, scoring two tries along with efforts from Elton Jantjies and Jean-Luc du Preez. The visitors were also awarded a penalty try.
With Warren Whiteley still out injured, Eben Etzebeth again showed that he has the ability to lead the Boks as he put in a strong showing himself as well as managed the team maturely.
“I think the key for winning today was leadership, the way our players showed calmness and character under pressure. There is a strong leadership group around our captain Eben Etzebeth,” said coach Alister Coetzee.
Argentina were down to 14 men in the second half after lock Tomas Lavanini received a second yellow card, the first of which was for a dangerous ‘grasscutter’ tackle, and the second was a deliberate knock-down.
The season has started well for the Springboks, who appear to have put the horrors of 2016 behind them and have now scored four or more tries and 35 or more points in each of their last five Test matches.
The latest win sees them reclaim their spot as third in the World Rugby rankings, behind New Zealand and England. Ireland move down to fourth, with Australia in fifth position. Argentina remain tenth.
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