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At 1:40am this morning my alarm woke me with a jolt. I didn’t hesitate though, I bounded from bed and took up residence on the couch to watch the mighty All Blacks begin their Rugby World Cup 2015 campaign against Los Pumas of Argentina.
I thought the Darkness started well. A solid Dan Carter penalty opened the scoring and the All Blacks seemed very much in control. But then, as if from nowhere, Argentina decided to turn it on.
Perhaps they were inspired by the success of the Brave Blossoms in their historic victory against South Africa?
Perhaps Los Pumas lifted, as most teams do, simply because they were playing the All Blacks and so intended to leave nothing on the field?
Whatever it was, it rattled McCaw and his men.
A moment of note occurred when Argentina were given a penalty on halfway and McCaw, for reasons not apparent, decided to stick out his leg and trip the Argentinian player who was taking the quick tap.
The TMO spotted the infringement and brought it to the referee’s attention, who dutifully sent McCaw to the sin bin. I was somewhat bemused by McCaw’s actions; what on this good earth had possessed him to do what he did?
Next up Conrad Smith, one of the cleverest tacticians in the modern game, decided to add to the All Blacks’ woes by giving away a cynical ruck penalty right in front of the posts. Smith was also binned and the All Blacks were down to 13.
Somebody had to step up.
Thankfully two players did.
The first was Kieran Read. His barnstorming runs and captaincy in the absence of McCaw stopped the Argentinians piling on too many points.
The second hero was Sonny Bill Williams. Sonny Bill Williams took the ball to the line at pace and had the power to break up the Argentinian rush defence.
Consequently, the backline started to fire. Thankfully the All Blacks put the South Americans to the sword.
The final score of 26-16 did not really reflect the rattle that Los Pumas had put on the Blackness… It was a tense time but the All Blacks got through unscathed.
Hopefully the next match against Namibia will be a less troublesome affair!
Join The Roar rugby editor Christy Doran, former Wallaby Matt Toomua and a cast of regular and special guests as they look at the biggest issues in the game on The Roar Rugby Podcast. If you’re looking for great odds on the next game check out Aussie bookmaker PlayUp. Chances are you’re about to lose. Set a deposit limit.