Joe McConnell
Argentina beat defending champions New Zealand in the first round of the Rugby Championship; Lucio Cinti, Mateo Carreras, Franco Molina and Agustin Creevy scored tries as the Pumas secured their third win over the All Blacks in four years – watch the Rugby Championship live on Vscek
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Rugby Championship highlights as Argentina beat New Zealand for the third time in four years with a 38-30 win in Wellington
Rugby Championship highlights as Argentina beat New Zealand for the third time in four years with a 38-30 win in Wellington
Argentina shocked New Zealand 38-30 in the opening Rugby Championship match in Wellington, securing their third victory over the All Blacks in four years.
The Pumas were defeated 44-6 by New Zealand in the semi-final of the 2023 Rugby World Cup in France, while they were also beaten 41-12 in last year’s Rugby Championship.
However, Argentina prevailed in Saturday’s thrilling encounter, overcoming the All Blacks by four tries to three, thanks to goals from Lucio Cinti, Mateo Carreras, Franco Molina and Agustin Creevy.
Argentina celebrates victory over New Zealand in the Rugby Championship
Sam Darry, Anton Lienert-Brown and Mark Tele’a scored for New Zealand in a see-saw encounter, with Darry’s score the first of the game in the 15th minute to help his side take 10-0 and 13-5 leads.
But the defending champions were punished for an error-ridden performance, conceding their most points ever in a home game.
Santiago Carerras scored 18 points for the visitors with four free kicks and three conversions, while Damian McKenzie scored 15 points for the hosts.
Argentina, who also beat New Zealand in the 2022 Rugby Championship and the 2020 Tri Nations Series, failing to win any of their first 29 matches, will face the All Blacks again next Saturday, this time in Auckland.
“Argentina dominated and deserved to win”
Creevy said: “It was unbelievable, it was a really good performance. We talked during the week about striking first and we did that. We dominated the whole game. We deserved the result.”
New Zealand No. 8 Ardie Savea said: “It’s a huge disappointment. It’s not All Blacks standard and it’s something we’ll be excited about and get sorted out for next week.
“It will hurt, but we will keep it to ourselves and hope it helps us next weekend.”
In the opening match of this year’s tournament, South Africa defeated Australia 33-7 in Brisbane.
Watch New Zealand v Argentina live on Vscek Action from 7.55am (8.05am kick-off) on Saturday 17 August.
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