Springbok assistant coach Tony Brown expects an epic encounter against Argentina in their penultimate Castle Lager Rugby Championship match in Durban on Saturday, and said it was vital to deliver a quality 80-minute performance to get the desired result.
The match, which kicks off at 17:10 (SA Time) at Hollywoodbets Kings Park, marks the Springboks’ final home game of the season, which will undoubtedly spice up what will be a crucial clash, with both teams still in the running to win the title.
In fact, all four participating teams, the Wallabies, Springboks, All Blacks, and Pumas, are still in the title race, which is expected to set the scene for an electric closing two pool rounds as the competition draws to a close.
“Our performance against the All Blacks (in Wellington) was good, but the Pumas are a completely different team,” said Brown.
“They’ve beaten the All Blacks and Wallabies already, so if we don’t pitch up in the right frame of mind, and try to be as dominant as possible, it will be a tough outing.”
“It’s vital for us that we get our game plan right this week. We showed patches of good rugby in the last few matches, but we’d like to put together a strong 80-minute performance, and use most of our opportunities, which is something we must still get right.”
Brown spoke highly of the work Argentinean coach Felipe Contepomi has done with the team and said, “He’s done a good job carrying on from what Michael Cheika did with them. They still play with flair, and they have a strong pack, so they are a challenging team to beat.”
Commenting on the return of Pumas fly-half Tomas Albornoz, Brown said he certainly posed a threat, like many of their other players.
“Both their flyhalves are good players,” said Brown. “In my opinion, Albornoz was probably the breakthrough player of the competition for them last year, and he’s a huge figure in their team. His decision-making is good, and he certainly has a bright future.”
