[ad_1]
Australia put in their first two-try flurry to register a comfortable 27-8 victory over Argentina at the rugby championship in Townsville, winning three consecutive tests for the first time in four years.
If the game did not have the quality of the New Zealand-South Africa clash that preceded it at North Queensland Stadium, the Wallabies will be content with one win to back up two wins over the Springboks.
Full-back Reece Hodge and center Samu Kerevi crossed paths in the brilliant opening 20 minutes and winger Andrew Kellaway added a third try for the home side 10 minutes to go after the bench gave new impetus to attack.
“I think we have started very well,” said Australia captain Michael Hooper. “We knew this game could always turn into a showdown [but I’m] really satisfied with our fight.
The Pumas scored just one try thanks to captain Julian Montoya on a rolling maul to draw within nine points of the Australians just after halftime, but remain winless after five rounds of the championship. “We didn’t have a good game, we didn’t make all of our tackles and we played in our half,” said Montoya. “We still have a week and we want to improve. “
Full of confidence after back-to-back wins over the world champions, the Wallabies rushed off the blocks on a humid evening in Australia’s tropical north. Quade Cooper delivered another confident performance at the opener and gave three of three shots off the tee, but it was the central partnership of Kerevi and Len Ikitau that was at the heart of Australia’s best rugby.
A charge on the field from Kerevi saw the Wallabies enter Argentina’s 22 in the fifth minute and Hodge tore three tackles to touch the ground. Some 14 minutes later and the pair combined for Australia’s second try, Ikitau mustering the chip and the pursuit of Cooper and his center partner using his muscle to force the ball over the line.
Australia were drawn into aerial fights with the Pumas in two draws last season and the next 40 minutes looked like those contests. Emiliano Boffelli and Cooper exchanged shots on goal and the home side entered the break with a 17-3 lead, but Argentina cut a big chunk soon after the restart.
The Breakdown: Sign up and receive our weekly rugby union email.
A period of sustained pressure earned the Pumas a penalty and they kicked a corner, threw a maul on the line-up that followed and swept skipper Montoya over the line to score. Now it was Argentina’s turn to play with a little confidence, but flanker Marcos Kremer received a yellow card for a move to Hodge to delay the response.
James O’Connor, in Cooper’s place and playing his first test of the year, extended the lead to 20-8 with an hourly penalty and made an inside pass to send Kellaway over the line and put a gloss on the result.
New Zealand’s previous victory earned them the rugby championship title, so the Wallabies will play for second place when they meet the Pumas again on the Gold Coast in the final round of the championship next week.
Source link
