After Argentina reached the World Cup semi-finals for the first time in 2007 they implored the Six Nations committee to allow them to join the championship, not least because most of their players were based in Europe. It did not happen and eight years on their presence in the last four is less of a shock than it was then and they have a lot to thank the major European nations for.
Instead of being caught up in the rough and tumble of the Six Nations they have spent the last four years in the Rugby Championship, honing their game so that it is now a mixture of power and finesse rather than centred on the set pieces. Their progress contrasts with that of Italy, who are in much the same state today as they were when they joined the old Five Nations at the start of the century.
“I do not think we would have made as much progress had we joined the Six Nations, especially in the way our style has developed,” said the Argentina defence coach, Pablo Bouza, less than 24 hours after the 43-20 quarter-final success over the Six Nations champions, Ireland, at the Millennium Stadium. “The Rugby Championship has been great for us – it was tough at the start and we had to learn – and from next year we will have a team in Super Rugby.
“It is a different style to the Six Nations. When we tour Europe in the autumn, the pitches are slow and it is tough to get quick ball to play with. We struggled last year after beating Australia in the Rugby Championship and lost to Scotland. We used to play New Zealand every six or seven years but we have faced them nine times since 2011. As players and coaches we learn every time we play them and the Rugby Championship is good for our style of play because it is all about getting quick ball.”
The Pumas’ exploits in the last month have commanded media attention in Argentina, even knocking football off the back pages. They may struggle more for space on Sunday when they face Australia in the semi-final because it is the day of the presidential election.
“They say that people back home are going crazy but we are just trying to focus on preparing for the next game,” said Bouza. “The performance against Ireland was the best since Daniel [Hourcade] took over as coach and said he wanted us to play open rugby. We had a great opening 20 minutes, then suffered a yellow card and Ireland came back strongly. The final 20 minutes, when the bench came on, was a difference for us. Our goal at the start of the tournament was to make the quarter-finals and then to progress as far as we are able.”
Argentina were heavily beaten by Australia in Mendoza last July, conceding four tries in a 34-9 defeat, but the previous year they defeated the Wallabies 21-17 at the same venue.
After watching Scotland come within two minutes of beating the team that until then had been the most consistently impressive in the tournament, the Pumas sense an opportunity.
“Australia are one of the best attacking teams around and they are very hard to defend against because they have different ways of playing,” said Bouza. “They had a tough game against Scotland but still won. I think every match is 50-50 at the start but we know we are going to have to be at 100% to beat them.”
Argentina have some injury worries ahead of Sunday, including their captain Agustin Creevy who suffered a leg injury against Ireland. “We are waiting for the medical reports,” said Bouza. “Agustin is having some tests. He is the captain who is playing well. He is very important to us.”
