Rugby Union: Argentina Stun New Zealand in Thrilling Wellington Clash
August 10, 2024 – In a captivating Rugby Championship encounter, Argentina clinched a shock 38-30 bonus-point victory over New Zealand in Wellington on Saturday. The fast-paced and entertaining match saw the momentum shift between the two sides, but Los Pumas eventually came out on top, outscoring their hosts by four tries to three.
Argentina’s tries were scored by Lucio Cinti, Mateo Carreras, Franco Molina, and Agustin Creevy, while fly-half Santiago Carreras contributed 18 points with his boot, landing four penalties and three conversions. For the All Blacks, Sam Darry, Anton Lienert-Brown, and Mark Tele’a touched down, with Damian McKenzie adding three conversions and three penalties.
The result means New Zealand’s winless run at Wellington Stadium continues, with the home side having won there only once in the past seven Tests and remaining winless in their last four encounters in the city.
After a slow start, Argentina grew into the game and dominated the opening exchanges, spending the majority of the first 10 minutes camped inside the New Zealand half. The All Blacks eventually opened the scoring through a McKenzie penalty, before Darry crossed for the first try shortly after.
Undeterred, Argentina responded midway through the half when Cinti crossed the whitewash after a brilliant build-up involving Pablo Matera and Santiago Chocobares. The home side then increased their lead through another McKenzie penalty and a try from Lienert-Brown, but a late first-half score from Carreras kept the visitors within touching distance at the interval.
The second half saw the momentum swing firmly in Argentina’s favor, with Molina and Creevy scoring tries to give Los Pumas the lead, which they would not relinquish. Carreras added a further penalty to seal a famous victory for the visitors, who produced an outstanding performance in the final quarter to secure a shock triumph over the three-time Rugby World Cup champions.
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