History heavily favours Boks as Rugby Champs goes down to wire

While Argentina have an outside chance of pipping the Springboks to the Rugby Championship title, their chances of actually doing so are slim.

The teams meet in the final Rugby Championship match of the competition, in Mbombela, on Saturday with kick off at 5pm.

As things stand, the Boks have 19 log points, while Argentina have 14.

For the visitors to win their first championship and deny the Boks they will have to win the match, score three tries more than the Boks do and also deny the Boks any log points. They also have to win by a huge margin.

And while the Pumas shocked the Boks with a 29-28 victory in Santiago last weekend to keep the championship alive, to go with an away win in Wellington against the All Blacks and a big home win against the Wallabies over the course of the last few weeks, they will need some kind of miracle to achieve what’s needed to win the title.

Good record

And, on top of that, the Boks’ record in Mbombela, and against the Pumas in South Africa, is something that should also play in the home team’s favour.

In 16 meetings between the Boks and Pumas in South Africa, the hosts this weekend have lost only on one occasion – in 2015, when they went down 37-25 in Durban.

Also, at the Mbombela Stadium, the Boks are unbeaten in four previous Tests at the ground, including a meeting with the Pumas in 2016 when the Boks won 30-23.

Of course, the match will also be significant for Eben Etzebeth, who’ll break Victor Matfield’s Test cap record for the Boks, when he makes his 128th appearance.

‘Taking nothing for granted’

Bok coach Rassie Erasmus said his team were fully focused on delivering a proper performance this week after stumbling in their quest to win the match and title in Argentina last weekend.

“We know it’s not going to be easy because Argentina really believe they have what it takes to win the title, and they showed that anything is possible by defeating New Zealand at home and registering a record-breaking victory over Australia as well, so although we are close to claiming the title, we are taking nothing for granted,” said the Bok coach this week.

“The Pumas are a lot like South Africans. They come from a country where their players have also had to overcome great challenges to be where they are today, and this is the first time in history they have a shot at winning the trophy, so they’ll come out guns blazing because they have everything to gain and nothing to lose.

“We are preparing for a proper final and we know it will take a massive 23-man effort for the full 80 minutes to win the trophy.”