Rugby WC 2023 : New Zealand maul Argentina to reach 5th WC final

 


New Zealand comfortably thrashed  Argentina side 44-6 to begin semi-final weekend with a ruthlessly one sided contest.

 

Not every match can be a classic and, make no mistake, the All Blacks won’t mind one bit that their passage to a record fifth men’s Rugby World Cup final was so serene. They were simply superb and came perilously close to breaking their own record margin of victory in a World Cup semi-final (a 49-6 hammering of Wales in 1987) .


The Kiwis  turned ball into points, usually off the back of their dominant maul. An early turnover in their own 22 led to a march down the field where a couple of phases in the tight after a 5m lineout created space wide on the right. Richie Mo’unga’s long pass to Will Jordan exploited this as the winger dived over for what would be the first of a treble on the day.


Mark Tele’a had been dropped for the quarter-final win over Ireland due to breaching team protocol but, restored to the team  showed his class to have a huge hand in the second and third tries of the first half.

His opportunistic turnover on his own 22 after 13 phases of Pumas attack started a spell of gorgeous All Blacks running rugby as they sliced and offloaded their way up the pitch off for Jordie Barrett skittle through tackles for the try in the corner. Tele’a then showed off his power just before half-time as he barrelled and spun through three defenders to take New Zealand within inches of the line, where Frizzell could jog over in the corner on the following phase.


Given that no team had ever overcome a half-time deficit greater than seven points to win a World Cup semi-final, the 20-6 lead at the interval suggested it was game over. All doubt was removed just two minutes after the break when an All Blacks scrum on the 22 splintered the Pumas pack and the ageless Aaron Smith cut inside one defender, dummied past another and slid between two more for a sumptuous try.


From there, it was just the formality of completing the final 38 minutes to confirm a 34th New Zealand win in 37 editions of this fixture. 


The Kiwis will fave the winner of South Africa vs England in the other semi final


*** courtesy  independent.co.uk 

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