The Springboks, who lost over the weekend to the All Blacks, will feel a little undone by the result, but not all hope is lost.
It will take a big push to ensure they still win The Rugby Championship.
The Springboks will feel battered after losing to the All Blacks in New Zealand in a match which has put the All Blacks 4 Log points ahead of second placed Springboks.
The Springboks have two scenarios going forward.
It will be most likely be the case that the All Blacks beat the Pumas in Argentina and get the full 5 Log points for that encounter, elevating them to 23 Log points. The Springboks will face the Wallabies in Cape Town in a match that is a must win for the Springboks, with a bonus point. A win with a bonus point will see the Springboks on 19 Log points, only 4 behind the All Blacks when heading into the final clash at Ellis Park. A Springbok win in the last match with more than 7 points against the All Blacks could then decide the competition winner by means of points difference, as the Springboks and All Blacks will be tied at 23 Log points at that juncture.
The Springboks will however be hoping that the All Blacks do not score a bonus point in Argentina. This will leave the All Blacks with only 22 Log points, which would present a target that would be easier to achieve than having to beat the All Blacks with a bonus point at Ellis Park.
A win-win scenario for the Springboks would be for Argentina to beat the All Blacks, this is however a very, very, very unlikely result.
All in all, not all is lost for the Springboks, a win against the Wallabies with a bonus point in Cape Town is however non-negotiable. A win without a bonus point against the Wallabies will most likely see the All Blacks take the competition as a bonus point win against the All Blacks at Ellis Park will be a lot more difficult to achieve than beating the Wallabies with a five-point haul.
Everybody is painting the scenario that the AB’s will beat the Argies with 4 or more tries. What they do forget is that the Argies are more determined at home, and will be lifted by their performance against NZ 2 Saturdays ago. The weather wasn’t great, and the Argies were good value for money in keeping the scoreline down. So while if any team can score 4 tries against them in Argentina, it is NZ, but that all depends on 23 muscles between the ears of 23 Argentinian players. If that muscle is functioning well, the AB’s will struggle to put 4 past them, and also to win by double digit figures.
@ Lion4ever:
Of course what you are saying is true and we all here hope that the Argies will make it difficult for the ABs. But if you watched last year’s match where the ABs dismantled the Pumas in Argentina, you would probably understand why most take it as a foregone conclusion that the ABs will get the 5 points.
One can rightly say that that was last year but the Pumas don’t look to be any better than last year.
A weakened Puma’s pushed the Bokke hard in Mendoza, and performed admirably in a wet NZ. So while I will agree that its a big possibility that NZ will put 4 past them, but I still feel the Pumas will surprise the AB’s.
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