The Wallabies staged a remarkable comeback, defeating South Africa 38-22 after trailing 22-0.
The All Blacks overcame Argentina 41-24, with standout performances from Will Jordan and Cortez Ratima.
James O’Connor’s leadership was pivotal for the Wallabies, highlighting his career resurgence.
When the draw for this year’s Rugby Championship was announced, it seemed clear the pecking order in the competition would very quickly be established. Poor old Australia would get a thrashing at Ellis Park from South Africa, and the first-string All Blacks team would deal to Argentina inCordoba.
Suddenly, we have a real contest on our hands. In one of the great comebacks of all time, the Wallabies, down 22-0 after 18 minutes, recovered superbly to stun the Springboks 42-37.
In Cordoba, the Pumas, staring a hiding in the face when they were behind 31-10 at halftime, then rattled what amounted to an almost completely different (after very early wholesale subbing) All Blacks side in the third quarter.
Normal service was only restored in the last 20 minutes, with the All Blacks finally winning 41-24.
Once in a lifetime
Having had the massive good fortune to have seen great once-in-a-lifetime attacking players – such as Sir Bryan Williams, Stu Wilson, Sir John Kirwan, Christian Cullen and Dan Carter – in their prime, I know it’s a massive bonus that in Will Jordan, we all get to enjoy another all-time great. In Cordoba, the whole range of Jordan’s abilities were on display.
What makes him so truly remarkable is that on the one hand, as a finisher, he’s impeccable. If a try is on for him, he will score it. His record of 42 tries in 44 tests is ample proof of that. For a while, it almost worked against him because as a winger he was a champion, and he was shunted to the wing. But he’s an even better fullback, and proof of that came again against the Pumas, when he put Sevu Reece away for a ninth-minute try and then, in the 24th minute, made a brilliant run, and fed Cortez Ratima for the halfback to score. Not all gifted runners have tactical sense as well. Jordan does.
Not flash, but effective
The first-half dominance and the last-quarter recovery for the All Blacks were largely based on a tight five that increasingly looks capable of taking on any team in the world.
There were performances to applaud from captain Scott Barrett (who looks back in his best form), rookie lock Fabian Holland (who is having the best debut season of an All Blacks lock since Brodie Retallick in 2012) and prop Ethan de Groot (a brick wall on defence). And, as he did all season for the Crusaders, Fletcher Newell, the 275kg man (he can squat with that much on the bar) was an immovable force at tighthead.
Tupou Vaa'i (left) and All Blacks captain Scott Barrett face Los Pumas in Argentina.
Photo / Photosport
A bigger worry than battered egos
Given that scrummaging has been regarded for decades by the Pumas as basically a measure of masculinity – which really matters in a country where macho culture has a real grip – it would have been devastating for the hosts to see the All Blacks not just match but easily better their scrum. But an even more urgent matter for the Pumas than the scrum will be the fragility of their defence against lineout drives.
A reflection of the maturity of Ardie Savea’s All Blacks captaincy was the fact that late in the game, with Scott Barrett off the field, Savea chose not once, but twice, to use lineout drives to get the tries that sealed up the test. Lineout drives remain for me a blight on the game, but when they’re legal, and can be match-winners, players and teams can never be criticised for using them. It’s the lawmakers at World Rugby who are to blame.
Showing he belongs
The proving ground for a test player will, of course, always be in an international game. On that basis, Chiefs halfback Cortez Ratima showed against the Pumas that he belongs in test rugby. He distributed well, his technical kicking was accurate and in general, he provided the sort of command that at the top level is needed from a halfback.
Cam Roigard remains the gold standard, but Ratima will let nobody down if he’s needed.
Cortez Ratima makes a break for the All Blacks against Argentina. Photo / Photosport
The hemisphere gap
If ever there was a clear illustration of the attitude towards how the game should be played between the Northern Hemisphere and Southern Hemisphere, it was surely in the test in Cordoba. Referee Pierre Brousset had a good game, clear and decisive. But unlike Super Rugby Pacific, where the aim is to provide a high-quality spectacle, this time we saw how refs are instructed to work in internationals.
Examples? A lack of urgency to get players back into the actual game after an injury break, and the importance given to the dreaded television match officials (TMOs). Hearing the TMO, South African Marius van der Westhuizen, prattling into Brousset’s ear about a forward pass while play was going on, was a reminder that TMOs, while extremely handy when invited by a referee to assist in a decision on a very close try, should spend the rest of the time, as they say in the classics, only speaking when they’re spoken to.
To say O’Connor has been through some rocky patches in his rugby career is to vastly understate the case. He began as an 18-year-old sensation in the Wallabies in 2008, but, as can happen with teenage boys suddenly in the international sporting spotlight, it was obvious he was struggling off the field.
In 2013, his Australian contract was torn up following some off-field incidents. He then became something of a rugby nomad, playing in Ireland and France. What’s remarkable is how the kid who kept falling off the path pulled himself together and grew into the level-headed, well-liked adult who helped steer the Crusaders to a Super title this year.
Australian coach Joe Schmidt only included O’Connor in the Wallabies Rugby Championship squad this year because of injuries to other players. Amazingly, there surely has to be an outside chance now that O’Connor might play through to the 2027 Rugby World Cup.
Phil Gifford is a Contributing Sports Writer for NZME. He is one of the most-respected voices in New Zealand sports journalism.
