Select Edition

Northern Northern
Southern Southern
Global Global
NZ NZ

Much has changed since Los Pumas last two test tour of New Zealand in 1997

By Frankie Deges
Marcos Kremer of Argentina pushes Shannon Frizell of the All Blacks during the 2020 Tri-Nations rugby match between the New Zealand All Blacks and the Argentina Los Pumas at Bankwest Stadium on November 14, 2020 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)

That tour in 1997 was a really hard one for Los Pumas. Five games, two tests and the tour opener against the always strong New Zealand Maoris.

ADVERTISEMENT

The understandable loss in Napier against a Maori side led by Errol Brain was the start of a tour that had one win as scant reward, under heavy rain in Nelson, 48-10 against Nelson Marlborough.

Flying over the Cook Straight was a forewarning of what would happen later that week – the four or five small Air New Zealand planes that transported the squad moved and shook in one of those regular storms that hit the southern and northern tip of both islands.

Video Spacer

Video Spacer

Even if the test at the old Athletic Park was played under the sun, it was a dark day for Argentine rugby, with the 93-8 loss leaving a group of players perplexed and unable to understand what had hit them. They were certainly moved and shaken.

Taranaki beat them midweek and the second test, a night game in Hamilton, was a more decent loss: 62-10.

Argentina had some very good players, namely Lisandro Arbizu, Gonzalo Quesada, Nico Fernández Miranda, Rolando Martin, the huge locking duo of Germán Llanes and Pedro Sporleder and Mario Ledesma, who played his first major test in Hamilton.

The All Blacks were one of the best teams in history: Olo Brown, Sean Fitzpatrick and Craig Dowd, Ian Jones and Robin Brooke; Josh Kronfeld, Taine Randell and Zinny; Justin Marshall and Carlos Spencer, Tana, Lee Stensness and Frank Bunce, Jeff ‘Goldie’ Wilson and Christian Cullen. Enough said.

ADVERTISEMENT

That was the last time Argentina played two consecutive tests against New Zealand.

That was the start of professional rugby in Argentina, maybe not in the pocket. Certainly in the mindset and big thanks must go to the iconic Grizz Wyllie.

It might have taken a few years for Los Pumas to find their feet in test rugby and 23 years for their first win against the All Blacks, but 2022 is a totally different scenario. Not that this means the task is in anyway easier.

Much has been said about the current state of the men in black; they really had their backs against the wall, probably like never before for this current crop of players. They responded.

ADVERTISEMENT

Boy did they respond.

Los Pumas are showing signs of getting better with each game since the start of the season.

Yes, it is great to look down on the rest of the teams from the top of the table, but it is momentary gratification. Movement is expected over the weekend.

Pablo Matera was only four years old when Argentina played those two consecutive tests in New Zealand in ‘97. He will feel at home this first week in Christchurch, a city he called home from late last year until the end of a winning Super Rugby campaign.

Eyes were on him when, as captain, he was instrumental in the 25-15 win in the Bankwest Stadium in Sydney in 2020. The 25 points were all scored by the absent Nicolás Sánchez, but Matera was the leader that was needed in such a game.

His time later spent in Christchurch will have proved very important for him, as a leader without the captaincy, learning about the rugby culture in the country, training and rubbing shoulders with many of his rivals over the next couple of weekends.

Knowing where the best coffee shops in Christchurch are will come handy, but what he learnt in the inner circles of the Crusaders could prove crucial.

Flying, so far, under the radar is assistant coach Felipe Contepomi. The Leinster attack coach for four seasons is very much respected by Michael Cheika.

His heir apparent, has not only worked with one of the best clubs in the world but should have been in close contact with Joe Schmidt, sharing plans and working together for the benefit of Irish rugby.

Both have moved back to their own countries and now they face each other. Again, Felipe will know what to expect from a team with Joe onboard. As with Matera, the All Blacks will also know what Contepomi and Cheika, a regular opponent for almost a decade, can bring to the party.

I don’t expect the All Blacks to win by 50 as Hamish Bidwell wrote earlier in the week; it is also hard to bet against a side that is on the mend and has the urgent need to regain the confidence of a country.

Related

But Argentina is on the rise, have taken a lot of positives from the shared series against the Wallabies and, if anything, this Rugby Championship format is much friendlier to them that those in previous years, when they seemed to be on a long-haul flight every fortnight.

Can Los Pumas beat the All Blacks in either of the two upcoming tests? Now that the hoodoo of never beating the All Blacks has been broken, and given their recent game-by-game growth, there is confidence in the camp.

One minute at a time, for eighty minutes.

ADVERTISEMENT

Join free

Aotearoa Rugby Podcast | Episode 6

Sam Warburton | The Big Jim Show | Full Episode

Japan Rugby League One | Sungoliath v Eagles | Full Match Replay

Japan Rugby League One | Spears v Wild Knights | Full Match Replay

Boks Office | Episode 10 | Six Nations Final Round Review

Aotearoa Rugby Podcast | How can New Zealand rugby beat this Ireland team

Beyond 80 | Episode 5

Rugby Europe Men's Championship Final | Georgia v Portugal | Full Match Replay

Trending on RugbyPass

Comments

Join free and tell us what you really think!

Sign up for free
ADVERTISEMENT

Latest Features

Comments on RugbyPass

J
Jon 4 hours ago
Jake White: Are modern rugby players actually better?

This is the problem with conservative mindsets and phycology, and homogenous sports, everybody wants to be the same, use the i-win template. Athlete wise everyone has to have muscles and work at the gym to make themselves more likely to hold on that one tackle. Do those players even wonder if they are now more likely to be tackled by that player as a result of there “work”? Really though, too many questions, Jake. Is it better Jake? Yes, because you still have that rugby of ole that you talk about. Is it at the highest International level anymore? No, but you go to your club or checkout your representative side and still engage with that ‘beautiful game’. Could you also have a bit of that at the top if coaches encouraged there team to play and incentivized players like Damian McKenzie and Ange Capuozzo? Of course we could. Sadly Rugby doesn’t, or didn’t, really know what direction to go when professionalism came. Things like the state of northern pitches didn’t help. Over the last two or three decades I feel like I’ve been fortunate to have all that Jake wants. There was International quality Super Rugby to adore, then the next level below I could watch club mates, pulling 9 to 5s, take on the countries best in representative rugby. Rugby played with flair and not too much riding on the consequences. It was beautiful. That largely still exists today, but with the world of rugby not quite getting things right, the picture is now being painted in NZ that that level of rugby is not required in the “pathway” to Super Rugby or All Black rugby. You might wonder if NZR is right and the pathway shouldn’t include the ‘amateur’, but let me tell you, even though the NPC might be made up of people still having to pull 9-5s, we know these people still have dreams to get out of that, and aren’t likely to give them. They will be lost. That will put a real strain on the concept of whether “visceral thrill, derring-do and joyful abandon” type rugby will remain under the professional level here in NZ. I think at some point that can be eroded as well. If only wanting the best athlete’s at the top level wasn’t enough to lose that, shutting off the next group, or level, or rugby players from easy access to express and showcase themselves certainly will. That all comes back around to the same question of professionalism in rugby and whether it got things right, and rugby is better now. Maybe the answer is turning into a “no”?

35 Go to comments
j
john 7 hours ago
Will the Crusaders' decline spark a slow death for New Zealand rugby?

But here in Australia we were told Penney was another gun kiwi coach, for the Tahs…….and yet again it turned out the kiwi coach was completely useless. Another con job on Australian rugby. As was Robbie Deans, as was Dave Rennie. Both coaches dumped from NZ and promoted to Australia as our saviour. And the Tahs lap them up knowing they are second rate and knowing that under pressure when their short comings are exposed in Australia as well, that they will fall in below the largest most powerful province and choose second rate Tah players to save their jobs. As they do and exactly as Joe Schmidt will do. Gauranteed. Schmidt was dumped by NZ too. That’s why he went overseas. That why kiwi coaches take jobs in Australia, to try and prove they are not as bad as NZ thought they were. Then when they get found out they try and ingratiate themselves to NZ again by dragging Australian teams down with ridiculous selections and game plans. NZ rugby’s biggest problem is that it can’t yet transition from MCaw Cheatism. They just don’t know how to try and win on your merits. It is still always a contest to see how much cheating you can get away with. Without a cheating genius like McCaw, they are struggling. This I think is why my wise old mate in NZ thinks Robertson will struggle. The Crusaders are the nursery of McCaw Cheatism. Sean Fitzpatrick was probably the father of it. Robertson doesn’t know anything else but other countries have worked it out.

30 Go to comments
A
Adrian 9 hours ago
Will the Crusaders' decline spark a slow death for New Zealand rugby?

Thanks Nick The loss of players to OS, injury and retirement is certainly not helping the Crusaders. Ditto the coach. IMO Penny is there to hold the fort and cop the flak until new players and a new coach come through,…and that's understood and accepted by Penny and the Crusaders hierarchy. I think though that what is happening with the Crusaders is an indicator of what is happening with the other NZ SRP teams…..and the other SRP teams for that matter. Not enough money. The money has come via the SR competition and it’s not there anymore. It's in France, Japan and England. Unless or until something is done to make SR more SELLABLE to the NZ/Australia Rugby market AND the world rugby market the $s to keep both the very best players and the next rung down won't be there. They will play away from NZ more and more. I think though that NZ will continue to produce the players and the coaches of sufficient strength for NZ to have the capacity to stay at the top. Whether they do stay at the top as an international team will depend upon whether the money flowing to SRP is somehow restored, or NZ teams play in the Japan comp, or NZ opts to pick from anywhere. As a follower of many sports I’d have to say that the organisation and promotion of Super Rugby has been for the last 20 years closest to the worst I’ve ever seen. This hasn't necessarily been caused by NZ, but it’s happened. Perhaps it can be fixed, perhaps not. The Crusaders are I think a symptom of this, not the cause

30 Go to comments
T
Trevor 11 hours ago
Will forgotten Wallabies fit the Joe Schmidt model?

Thanks Brett.. At last a positive article on the potential of Wallaby candidates, great to read. Schmidt’s record as an international rugby coach speaks for itself, I’m somewhat confident he will turn the Wallaby’s fortunes around …. on the field. It will be up to others to steady the ship off the paddock. But is there a flaw in my optimism? We have known all along that Australia has the players to be very competitive with their international rivals. We know that because everyone keeps telling us. So why the poor results? A question that requires a definitive answer before the turn around can occur. Joe Schmidt signed on for 2 years, time to encompass the Lions tour of 2025. By all accounts he puts family first and that’s fair enough, but I would wager that his 2 year contract will be extended if the next 18 months or so shows the statement “Australia has the players” proves to be correct. The new coach does not have a lot of time to meld together an outfit that will be competitive in the Rugby Championship - it will be interesting to see what happens. It will be interesting to see what happens with Giteau law, the new Wallaby coach has already verbalised that he would to prefer to select from those who play their rugby in Australia. His first test in charge is in July just over 3 months away .. not a long time. I for one wish him well .. heaven knows Australia needs some positive vibes.

21 Go to comments
FEATURE
FEATURE Luke Cowan-Dickie: 'I didn’t feel right. I felt like I was going to pass out. Everything was going black in front of me' Luke Cowan-Dickie: 'I didn’t feel right. I felt like I was going to pass out. Everything was going black in front of me'
Search