The Rugby Championship reigning champions New Zealand will get their title defence underway this weekend when they travel to Estadio Malvinas Argentinas to take on Argentina on Saturday.
This shortened Rugby Championship, accommodating the Rugby World Cup 2023, will allow the four main sides from the Southern Hemisphere to hone their game plans as the showpiece tournament in France edges closer.
Match preview
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The past 12 months have been difficult for the All Blacks and will go down as one of their worst in history as they only managed to win eight of their last 13 Tests, despite clinching the Rugby Championship last year.
They also recorded two unwanted firsts in that time, losing their first-ever home series to Ireland while also suffering their first defeat against Argentina on their home patch.
Saturday will be the first time that the All Blacks will play a Test in Mendoza, and Ian Foster will be determined to mark the occasion with a win as they did the last time they visited Argentina when they won 20-16 in Buenos Aires in 2019.
With one eye on what should be a huge match against last year's runners-up South Africa in a week from Saturday, Foster has opted to go with a surprise tactic announcing that Damian McKenzie will be starting for the All Blacks at number 10 this weekend.
In addition, the New Zealand boss will hand a first start to Emoni Nawara on the wing, while Josh Lord, who has not been a part of the All Blacks setup since 2021, will get his third Test cap in this match alongside Scott Barrett.
New Zealand have beaten Argentina 12 times in their last 14 encounters in this tournament and will be heavily fancied to extend that record with another victory this time around.
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However, the hosts are not to be overlooked in this tournament and will be chomping at the bit to avenge that narrow loss they suffered in 2019 when they nearly pulled off an incredible win with a last-second driving maul that was stopped just short of the line.
Argentina finished at the bottom of the table in last year's Rugby Championship with a record of two wins and four losses in their six matches, which was the same as the Wallabies; however, Australia claimed third place courtesy of two bonus points earned in the tournament compared to Los Pumas' one.
Former Wallabies coach Michael Cheika has made notable improvements to Los Pumas since taking on the role; however, he does have a few notable injury concerns to deal with in this match and will likely look to the likes of Pablo Matera, Emiliano Boffelli and Julian Montoya to bring all their experience to the table.
The Argentines have overcome the All Blacks on two occasions, with the first coming at a neutral venue in Australia back in 2020, while the second was right in their opponents' backyard at Christchurch last season.
Now with home-field advantage and having had the best part of a year to prepare, there are no excuses why Chieka's men cannot do it again this time, especially in front of a sold-out stadium in Mendoza.
Argentina form (all competitions):
- L
- L
- L
- W
- L
- L
New Zealand form (all competitions):
- W
- W
- W
- W
- W
- D
Team News
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Both coaches have announced their teams for this crucial opening encounter, and while there have been a few questions lingering over the leadership of the All Blacks, Sam Cane has retained the captaincy for this match.
The rest of the squad is loaded with depth and experience, with hooker Dane Coles (85 caps), Barrett (59 caps), Aaron Smith (115 caps) and Beauden Barrett (113 caps) all included in the starting 15.
Props Ethan de Groot and Tyrel Lomax have played in Argentina in the past, along with Ardie Savea and Shannon Frizell behind them, with the only exception being Lord, who will pick up his third Test cap in this one.
Lucio Sordoni will return to Los Pumas in the number three jersey, earning his fourth cap alongside his skipper Montoya at hooker, with Thomas Gallo rounding out a powerful front row.
Behind them, Matias Alemanno and Tomas Lavanini will lock the scrum, joined by Rodrigo Bruni and Juan Martin Gonzalez in the second row, while Matera, who usually applies his trade at number eight, will move to flanker for this match.
The back-three of Argentina have plenty of pace with Boffelli at full-back, while Bautista Delguy and Mateo Carreras on the wings will be supplied by Gonzalo Bertranou and Santiago Carreras in the halves.
The biggest setback for Argentina will be the forced exclusion of Marcos Kremer for the entire tournament after the powerhouse forward was handed a five-week ban for a shocking clearout during a Top 14 match between Stade Francais and Racing 92.
Argentina starting lineup: 15. Beauden Barrett, 14. Emoni Narawa, 13. Rieko Ioane, 12. Jordie Barrett, 11. Caleb Clarke, 10. Damian McKenzie, 9. Aaron Smith, 8. Ardie Savea, 7. Sam Cane, 6. Shannon Frizell, 5. Josh Lord, 4. Scott Barrett, 3. Tyrel Lomax, 2. Dane Coles, 1. Ethan de Groot
Replacements: 16. Codie Taylor, 17. Ofa Tu'ungafasi, 18. Nepo Laulala, 19. Tupou Vaa'i, 20. Dalton Papali'i, 21. Finlay Christie, 22. Richie Mo'unga, 23. Braydon Ennor
New Zealand starting lineup: 15. Emiliano Boffelli, 14. Bautista Delguy, 13. Matias Moroni, 12. Lucio Cinti, 11. Mateo Carreras, 10. Santiago Carreras, 9. Gonzalo Bertranou, 8. Rodrigo Bruni, 7. Juan Martin Gonzalez, 6. Pablo Matera, 5. Tomas Lavanini, 4. Matias Alemanno, 3. Lucio Sordoni, 2. Julian Montoya, 1. Thomas Gallo
Replacements: Agustin Creevy, 17. Mayco Vivas, 18. Eduardo Bello, 19. Pedro Rubiolo, 20. Santiago Grondona, 21. Lautaro Bazan Velez, 22. Nicolas Sanchez, 23. Matias Orlando
Head To Head
New Zealand have been the dominant side in this fixture over the years, winning 32 of their 35 matches against Argentina, while one match ended in a draw.
This is the 13th time that they will meet in Argentina, and New Zealand have won on 12 occasions.
These sides have never met at Estadio Malvinas Argentinas in the past.
We say: Argentina 16-21 New Zealand
While Argentina will be relishing the opportunity to play in front of their home fans, the All Blacks have bags of experience in their ranks, and the likes of Cane and Barrett will not be phased in the least.
On paper, this should be an easy win for the All Blacks, but Los Pumas have improved notably over the last two years and will not be a pushover. However, the quality of New Zealand should be the determining factor here, and we fancy they will go on to win, albeit by a relatively slim margin.
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