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Los Pumas need to be mentally stronger to finish when it is there for the taking

(Photo by Daniel Jayo/Getty Images)

The image speaks a thousand words. The fixed camera, agreed prior to kick-off that will have no sound, captures all that happens in the small changing room.

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There is a team with heads hanging from tired shoulders and a coach clearly getting stuck into them. What he says can only be imagined. And the imagination says that he might be using all his menu of four-lettered words.

The team walks on to the field for a second half trailing by a big score. In the ensuing fourty minutes, they go from 8-31 down to win 45-34 in one of the biggest ever test-turnarounds.

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By the final whistle the hanging heads were from Los Pumas, the team that should have won that night in Salta.

Fast forward four more years and Los Pumas were leading by a smaller margin, but putting the Wallabies under pressure and forcing them to give away some unnecessary penalties – eleven in the first half.

The changing room was similar in size and the camera position almost the same. It was the Pumas’ shed where Michael Cheika, no longer in the Wallaby camp but now with Argentina, was taking a much softer approach during his half-time talk.

When asked by RugbyPass earlier in the previous week what language would he use in a similar situation, he smiled and said that “I’ll say all I can in Spanish; there are moments when I want to speak in Spanish but sometimes I don’t have the words.”

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“When I speak in English, players translate to each other which is better than having a translator as they speak and communicate amongst themselves.”

Would his new team have understood his half-time speech in 2018? “They understand tone very well.”

With the team leading, maybe there wasn’t need for harsh words, only reminders of what had to be done in the final forty minutes.

Maybe the tone wasn’t right as Los Pumas were one team in the opening forty minutes, another team in the following twenty and seemed to lose the plot in the final twenty, when the Wallaby bench proved stronger than the Argentine.

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Much of this seems to come down to the mental strength that seemed absent when it was most needed.

Mental health was overflying the opening weekend of The Rugby Championship as Wallaby captain Michael Hooper found it in him to voice his need for a break from the pressures of the game.

His valiant, and quiet decision spoke loudly about the pressures for players at the highest echelons.

As much as fitness, tactical capacity and technical prowess is needed, not being able to close down a game has more to do with the mind than the standard of an individual player or the team.

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With staffs growing in numbers, few have an in-house professional to lead the much-needed mental aspects.

Players do work on mental skills but, is it enough? Los Pumas travelled on tour last year with a mental coach, probably too late for an unhappy squad; it showed on the field of play.
Whatever is done, it seems insufficient for the real needs.

From a distance, watching the All Blacks being pushed and shoved right, left and centre by a motivated Springbok side smelling blood, was clear.

Have players such as Beauden Barrett, Sam Cane or Sam Whitelock, to name three, forgotten how to play the game? Reaching that high standard takes an uncommon dedication and effort over many years.

If the mind is not right, all of this can be lost in a couple of games, even a couple of minutes and the downward spiral hard to stop.

The All Blacks could be back to their best on Saturday at Ellis Park. If it happens, will it mean they re-learnt how to play the game? No.

Probably it will have been because their mindset was back to where it had to be to play at this standard. Or they were mentally stronger than an always mentally strong Springboks.

There is, of course, too much noise around them, which doesn’t help. And knowing it can get louder puts them under even more pressure.

Not with Argentina. The pressure is of course there, but not in the way it is put on player’s shoulders in other countries. Much loved and supported, and always constantly punching above their weight, some losses are expected.

Yet, they did not find it in them to win the game against a Wallaby side that was there for the taking, at least on the evidence available in the opening half. That hurts.

They’d gone to the changing room with a penalty count of only three and got to double digits in the second.

Their kick-offs were not very imaginative and giving away soft penalties after almost each one of them, only gave Australia momentum.

Wanting to send a get-well-soon message to their captain Michael Hooper, the Wallabies were let out of jail a few times. Penalties that were kicked to touch provided two maul tries and a penalty try with a yellow try as bonus.

“Unacceptable,” said Cheika at the end of the game.

Australia took their opportunities, showed hunger and came through.

Mentally strong, with the clock in the red, they still wanted the winning bonus point. In a seesaw couple of minutes that seemed like an untidy training session, they got that try.

What seemed a forward pass in the game’s last pass was not deemed so and moving to the next game, Australia are in the right frame of mind and Argentina, that left the Malvinas Argentinas Stadium with heads hanging, need to work on how to raise themselves and go for the win.

They are all good players, many have beaten the Wallabies before. It will come down to have well prepared they are.

Mentally prepared.

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O
Oh no, not him again? 1 hour ago
England internationals disagree on final play execution vs All Blacks

Okay, so we blew it big time on Saturday. So rather than repeating what most people have all ready said, what do I want to see from Borthwick going forward?


Let's keep Marcus Smith on the pitch if he's fit and playing well. I was really pleased with his goal kicking. It used to be his weakness. I feel sympathy for George Ford who hadn't kicked all match and then had a kick to win the game. You hear pundits and commentators commend kickers who have come off the bench and pulled that off. Its not easy. If Steve B continues to substitute players with no clear reason then he is going to get criticised.


On paper I thought England would beat NZ if they played to their potential and didn't show NZ too much respect. Okay, the off the ball tackles certainly stopped England scoring tries, but I would have liked to see more smashing over gainlines and less kicking for position. Yes, I also know it's the Springbok endorsed world cup double winning formula but the Kiwi defence isn't the Bok defence, is it. If you have the power to put Smith on the front foot then why muzzle him? I guess what I'm saying is back, yourself. Why give the momentum to a team like NZ? Why feed the beast? Don't give the ball to NZ. Well d'uh.


Our scrum is a long term weakness. If you are going to play Itoje then he needs an ogre next door and a decent front row. Where is our third world class lock? Where are are realible front row bench replacements? The England scrum has been flakey for a while now. It blows hot and cold. Our front five bench is not world class.


On the positive side I love our starting backrow right now. I'd like to see them stick together through to the next world cup.


Anyway, there is always another Saturday.

7 Go to comments
C
CO 2 hours ago
Scott Robertson responds to criticism over All Blacks' handling errors

Robertson is more a manager of coaches than a coach so it comes down to intent of outcomes at a high level. I like his intent, I like the fact his Allblacks are really driving the outcomes however as he's pointed out the high error rates are not test level and their control of the game is driving both wins and losses. England didn't have to play a lot of rugby, they made far fewer mistakes and were extremely unlucky not to win.


In fact the English team were very early in their season and should've been comfortably beaten by an Allblacks team that had played multiple tests together.


Razor has himself recognised that to be the best they'll have to sort out the crisis levels of mistakes that have really increased since the first two tests against England.


Early tackles were a classic example of hyper enthusiasm to not give an inch, that passion that Razor has achieved is going to be formidable once the unforced errors are eliminated.


That's his secret, he's already rebuilt the passion and that's the most important aspect, its inevitable that he'll now eradicate the unforced errors. When that happens a fellow tier one nation is going to get thrashed. I don't think it will be until 2025 though.


The Allblacks will lose both tests against Ireland and France if they play high error rates rugby like they did against England.


To get the unforced errors under control he's going to be needing to handover the number eight role to Sititi and reset expectations of what loose forwards do. Establish a clear distinction with a large, swarthy lineout jumper at six that is a feared runner and dominant tackler and a turnover specialist at seven that is abrasive in contact. He'll then need to build depth behind the three starters and ruthlessly select for that group to be peaking in 2027 in hit Australian conditions on firm, dry grounds.


It's going to help him that Savea is shifting to the worst super rugby franchise where he's going to struggle behind a beaten pack every week.


The under performing loose forward trio is the key driver of the high error rates and unacceptable turn overs due to awol link work. Sititi is looking like he's superman compared to his openside and eight.


At this late stage in the season they shouldn't be operating with just the one outstanding loose forward out of four selected for the English test. That's an abject failure but I think Robertson's sacrificing link quality on purpose to build passion amongst the junior Allblacks as they see the reverential treatment the old warhorses are receiving for their long term hard graft.


It's unfortunately losing test matches and making what should be comfortable wins into nail biters but it's early in the world cup cycle so perhaps it's a sacrifice worth making.


However if this was F1 then Sam Cane would be Riccardo and Ardie would be heading into Perez territory so the loose forwards desperately need revitalisation through a rebuild over the next season to complement the formidable tight five.

28 Go to comments
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