Argentina delivered a remarkable performance against the Wallabies in Santa Fe, overcoming a 17-point deficit to secure a decisive 67-27 victory in the Rugby Championship. The match began with Australia taking an early lead at 20-3, but the tide turned dramatically in the second half when Argentina scored four tries in the final nine minutes.
The 67 points conceded by the Wallabies marks the highest total in their test history, surpassing the 61-22 loss they experienced in South Africa back in 1997. This defeat followed a narrow victory for Australia, a 20-19 win over Argentina in inclement weather just a week prior.
In sunny conditions this time, Australia seemed to regain their composure as Ben Donaldson made a tactical play down the blindside, assisting fullback Andrew Kellaway for their second try, which initially built a 17-point margin for the visitors. Loose forward Carlo Tizzano had opened the scoring for Argentina following an early penalty goal.
Argentina’s resurgence began 10 minutes before halftime, with Mateo Carreras completing an excellent play set up by Pablo Matera, followed by their captain Julian Montoya exploiting a vulnerable Wallabies defense to score. Although they approached another score before halftime, it was after the break that their dominance became apparent. An error from Marika Koroibete led to a try by Juan Martin Gonzalez.
As Argentina’s momentum grew, Pablo Matera added another try after coach Schmidt made changes to the Australian halves, witnessing Argentina hit full stride with Joaquin Oviedo’s try extending their scoring streak to 38 unanswered points.