The prospect remains that, after this weekend’s quarter-finals, the teams left standing at the World Cup will all be from the southern hemisphere.
Although there is more movement of players between the hemispheres than ever below the international game, at the highest level the old north-south divide remains as wide as ever, perhaps most evident in the transformation of Argentina’s game since their admission to the Rugby Championship three years ago.
From the scrum-based, defence-heavy game that took them to third place in the 2007 World Cup, they have arrived at this tournament with an attacking verve that enabled them to score 22 tries in the pool stage. They face Ireland in Cardiff tomorrow with Nicolás Sánchez and Juan Martín Hernández, two of the game’s most prized playmakers, at fly half and inside centre respectively, and a back three of Joaquín Tuculet, Santiago Cordero and Juan Imhoff with pace to burn.
“In our first year in the Rugby Championship, we tried to play to our tempo,” Marcos Ayerza, the loose-head prop, said. “The focus now is to adapt to the southern-hemisphere way of playing, being more expansive. It’s fast rugby, it’s tiring, but it’s very good.”
The Pumas began to stretch their legs after Graham Henry, the former New Zealand head coach, had a stint as coaching consultant and persuaded them to expand their range.
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After failing to win any of their first 17 Rugby Championship games against New Zealand, South Africa and Australia, they have won two of their past four, including a first away win, scoring four tries in a 37-25 victory over the Springboks in Durban two months ago. “We love to keep the ball in hands now,” Hernández said. “It’s good for us, good for kids watching on TV.”
The traditional style of their game was based partly on their passion for scrummaging but also, in the professional era, because so many of their leading players plied their trade on Europe’s heavy pitches.
Regular exposure to southern-hemisphere opposition has begun their transformation and the process will accelerate next year, when Los Jaguares, Argentina’s own Super Rugby franchise, will be launched.
The majority of their leading players will return home from Europe, fewer will be enticed to play for Italy and their style of play will become firmly rooted in the southern hemisphere.
Ireland will be doing their bit for the northern hemisphere tomorrow, but they are aware that Argentina are playing their rugby in the fast lane now.
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IRELAND v ARGENTINA
Tomorrow, quarter-final
Location: Millennium Stadium
TV: ITV, 12.25pm (kick-off, 1pm)
Referee: J Garcès (France)
Ireland: R Kearney; T Bowe, K Earls, R Henshaw, D Kearney; J Sexton, C Murray; C Healy, R Best, M Ross, D Toner, I Henderson, J Murphy, C Henry, J Heaslip. Replacements: R Strauss, J McGrath, N White, D Ryan, R Ruddock, E Reddan, I Madigan, L Fitzgerald.
Argentina: J Tuculet; S Cordero, M Moroni, JM Hernández, J Imhoff; N Sánchez, M Landajo; M Ayerza, A Creevy, R Herrera, G Petti, T Lavanini, P Matera, JM Fernández Lobbe, L Senatore. Replacements: J Montoya, L Noguera, J P Orlandi, M Alemanno, F Isa, T Cubelli, J de la Fuente, LG Amorosino.