‘Nothing has been too easy for us’: Argentinian grit takes Pumas to semis

MARSEILLE, France — When the final whistle blew, the Stade Vélodrome vibrated to the sound of Argentinian celebrations.

Tears from the Argentine players on the bench had already begun to flow four minutes earlier when veteran Nicolas Sanchez intercepted a loose pass and ran away from the desperate Welsh defense to secure a semi-final place for the Pumas.

He was brought home by the sounds of “Argentina is a feeling that you cannot hide” from the stands. Sanchez’s winning score came in the 76th minute to finally clinch a match for Argentina that they should have lost in around the 30th minute.

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But instead of “Hymns and tunes“Hailing a Wales victory, it was the Argentine fans whose chants created a claustrophobic, cacophonous noise inside the magnificent stadium in the south of France as they celebrated a monumental 29-17 victory.

The Pumas players on the bench joined in the chants from the stands, leading the blue and white crowd to continue bouncing, scarves swinging and vocal chords torn as Argentina reached the last four.

In turn, Wales was devastated. The team was hampered by injuries during the game, faced a divisional decision against them and found themselves sorry in what will be the last time in the famous red jersey for some legends.

There was a turnaround on Michael Cheika’s side. Five weeks ago, they were completely defeated by England, who played against 14 men for 78 minutes, but failed to find a way to trouble the England defense until the final plays of the match . They lost 27-10 and the idea of ​​a semi-final would have been a world apart.

“In these tournaments you learn, depending on the draw, how you build there,” Cheika said. “I don’t think there’s been a drastic turnaround, it’s not linear either, it goes up and down, but the work you do as a foundation is what you count on in this tournament.”

There is something remarkable about Argentina and the Rugby World Cup. In 2007, they were neutral favorites as they eliminated France and Ireland in the pools only to lose to eventual winners South Africa in the semi-final. But they left their mark on the tournament by dismantling hosts France in the bronze medal match, playing rugby from another planet.

16 years later, there’s still that touch of flair – but given that both of their second-half tries were scored with a point-blank dart by the free-headed substitute, and the deciding score was an interception, This is an Argentina team built on careful pragmatism, solid foundations, and an eagerness to attack at every opportunity.

Few would have predicted an Argentina victory after around 30 minutes. Wales were in complete control, Dan Biggar scoring a brilliantly worked try in the 15th minute, as they strung together a series of offloads to give the fly-half the upper hand. But they missed two chances, first through Gareth Davies failing to capitalize on a break from Jac Morgan, then Josh Adams striking with an open field in front of him after failing to latch onto a pass by George North. Had one of them been stuck, Wales would have had a 17-0 lead, and it would have taken the most optimistic Argentina supporter to predict that they would find a way back.

These missed opportunities allowed the Pumas to gain a foothold in a match where referee Jaco Peyper was forced off after 16 minutes due to a calf injury sustained while chasing Biggar’s try, which led Karl Dickson to whistle. “It destabilizes you,” Warren Gatland said. “We were comfortable with Jaco Peyper and the relationship we had with him. It’s nothing against Karl but you do a lot of analysis on the referees. We hadn’t really prepared for the change.”

You could start to see the attrition starting to show in Wales’ ranks, as their fielding was sub-par, winning just two out of five in the top 40. Indiscipline gifted Argentina two penalties, they were also annoyed by Josh Adams. “An off-ball strike on scrum-half Tomas Cubelli, and so what should have been a lead of 17 points, or thereabouts, was only four at half-time.

Emiliano Boffelli’s boot turned the scoreboard to give Argentina a 12-10 lead in the 48th minute. Tomos Williams scored for Wales to put them five points ahead, but then came those two Pumas knockouts as Wales’ bruises began to count. Gareth Davies was forced off injured after 50 minutes, Biggar was on one leg for most of the second half but played through pain until the 74th minute, while Liam Williams was injured in the 60th minute. It’s the backbone of the team that’s gone – with Taulupe Faletau missing and breaking his arm against Georgia. With the departure of their experienced players, Argentina gained momentum in the game.

The first attempt was controversial. In the 63rd minute, the TMO reviewed an incident where Guido Petti’s shoulder collided with Nick Tompkins’ head. We’ve seen these get penalized before, given that there was clear and obvious contact, but Dickson reflected on the passage of the play: he’d called the tackle, the player was released, Tompkins went down and Petti was arrived with legal clearance. Decision: continue playing. Tompkins – rightly so – was assessed for a head injury, and four minutes later the Pumas scored through Joel Sclavi as Wales felt Dillon Lewis had forced a turnover. With this conversion, the Pumas were two points ahead.

Wales had another good chance when Rio Dyer broke away from the Pumas defence, but Louis Rees-Zammit’s acrobatic dive towards the line failed. From there the Pumas kept the pressure on and two minutes later Sanchez collected a loose pass from Sam Costelow and raced away to break Welsh hearts.

“We prepared a lot,” said Argentina captain Julian Montoya. “Nothing has been too easy for us in the last few years. We trust each other. We are a very close-knit group. I know you just see the 15 on the pitch or the 23 but there is a group of people behind us who are incredible. They work day and night. We are the lucky ones who wear the jersey but it’s a team effort.

For Wales, they will pay tribute to players like Biggar who last wore the red jersey, but that will sting. They had the opportunity to put this match beyond Argentina’s reach.

“It’s always a missed opportunity,” Gatland said afterwards. “Let’s take nothing away from Argentina. They’ve had wins against the All Blacks in recent years. They’re a tenacious team. They hang in there and play for each other. If you don’t take your chances and keep the scoreboard spinning, they’ll get you.

“We are disappointed because we came in with a lot of confidence. We thought that if we were precise and executed the game plan, we would be in the semi-final.”

For the Cheika Pumas, the World Cup continues for another week. It’s a remarkable turnaround. From its poor performance in Marseille at the opening of the tournament to this miracle five weeks later, Argentina reached the last four. The odds will be against them when they face Ireland or New Zealand in Paris next weekend, but as they prove time and time again, bet against this group at your own risk.

“We’re just excited to go to Paris, we haven’t had a taste of it yet at this World Cup,” Cheika said. “We will watch the game tonight and I know we will not be favorites. [in their semi-final] but we will do our best.”