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Siya Kolisi of the Springboks, centre, is tackled during the Rugby Championship match between the Australia Wallabies and South Africa Springboks at Allianz Stadium in Sydney, Australia, September 3 2022. Picture: MARK KOLBE/GETTY IMAGES
A titanic battle for scrum dominance is expected when the Springboks pack down against Argentina in Buenos Aires on Saturday, says SA prop Ox Nche.
With the race for the Rugby Championship title finely balanced, this is a must-win game for the Boks at Estadio José Amalfitani.
SA, Australia and Argentina are tied on nine log points, and with New Zealand leading the pack on 10, every point will count in the last two rounds of the competition.
With Argentina having beaten the All Blacks away from home and Australia on their home patch, Nche says a big challenge awaits the Boks.
“We have to impose ourselves on them,” he said. “The main thing for us is that we know they always come up with something different and special, and especially in front of their home crowd, so we need to be ready for that.
“Argentina retained most of their ball in the scrum during the Rugby Championship, and we saw that they had a plan to counter the New Zealand scrum.
“It is important we prepare well in that department. It will be a good battle against them in the mauls. They disrupted New Zealand’s mauls and they also did well in loose play against Australia, so they certainly plan well in terms of how they stop mauls.
“We’ll have to find a way to counter that. For us, it’s not about the underdogs’ tag, it is about what we want to achieve and how we want to achieve it,” he said.
Springbok coach Jacques Nienaber is expected to announce his squad to face Argentina on Tuesday.
“As a team, we try to look for different combinations and we train that way too, so when a team is selected it is about getting the combinations right for that specific game and for the front rows to adapt in the match,” Nche said.
Wing Makazole Mapimpi says the Boks must be clinical in their finishing as they chase bonus point wins in their final two Rugby Championship outings.
“It was really great for us as a team to bounce back from the previous game against the Wallabies,” he said. “It was a good thing to be able to do what we enjoy doing, and especially to score tries when we had the opportunities.
“It is vital to score tries when we have the opportunity to play, so we have to focus on ensuring we finish our chances this week.
“Argentina are a good team with quality players and they have several experienced players, some of whom we have been playing against for a few years now.
“We know the intensity and physicality with which the All Blacks play. Argentina were on the same level against them in their first Test match.”
The Buenos Aires match will kick off at 9.10pm on Saturday, while the final-round clash between the teams will take place at Kings Park in Durban on September 24 (5.05pm).
Support our award-winning journalism. The Premium package (digital only) is R30 for the first month and thereafter you pay R129 p/m now ad-free for all subscribers.
Scrums the battleground in Argentina-Boks clash
A titanic battle for scrum dominance is expected when the Springboks pack down against Argentina in Buenos Aires on Saturday, says SA prop Ox Nche.
With the race for the Rugby Championship title finely balanced, this is a must-win game for the Boks at Estadio José Amalfitani.
SA, Australia and Argentina are tied on nine log points, and with New Zealand leading the pack on 10, every point will count in the last two rounds of the competition.
With Argentina having beaten the All Blacks away from home and Australia on their home patch, Nche says a big challenge awaits the Boks.
“We have to impose ourselves on them,” he said. “The main thing for us is that we know they always come up with something different and special, and especially in front of their home crowd, so we need to be ready for that.
“Argentina retained most of their ball in the scrum during the Rugby Championship, and we saw that they had a plan to counter the New Zealand scrum.
“It is important we prepare well in that department. It will be a good battle against them in the mauls. They disrupted New Zealand’s mauls and they also did well in loose play against Australia, so they certainly plan well in terms of how they stop mauls.
“We’ll have to find a way to counter that. For us, it’s not about the underdogs’ tag, it is about what we want to achieve and how we want to achieve it,” he said.
Springbok coach Jacques Nienaber is expected to announce his squad to face Argentina on Tuesday.
“As a team, we try to look for different combinations and we train that way too, so when a team is selected it is about getting the combinations right for that specific game and for the front rows to adapt in the match,” Nche said.
Wing Makazole Mapimpi says the Boks must be clinical in their finishing as they chase bonus point wins in their final two Rugby Championship outings.
“It was really great for us as a team to bounce back from the previous game against the Wallabies,” he said. “It was a good thing to be able to do what we enjoy doing, and especially to score tries when we had the opportunities.
“It is vital to score tries when we have the opportunity to play, so we have to focus on ensuring we finish our chances this week.
“Argentina are a good team with quality players and they have several experienced players, some of whom we have been playing against for a few years now.
“We know the intensity and physicality with which the All Blacks play. Argentina were on the same level against them in their first Test match.”
The Buenos Aires match will kick off at 9.10pm on Saturday, while the final-round clash between the teams will take place at Kings Park in Durban on September 24 (5.05pm).
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