The Springboks lifted the Rugby Championship for the first time in Argentina on Saturday night.
This is how I rated their performances against the Pumas:
15 Willie le Roux (6)
Fans are still waiting to see the best of Le Roux this year.
14 Cheslin Kolbe (6.5)
Chased hard whenever the ball was kicked and was also asked to operate at No.9 and did well when De Klerk was sin-binned
13 Lukhanyo Am (6.5)
Did well on defence.
12 Damian de Allende (7.5)
Was superb on defence and especially at the breakdown, making a great steal on the ground with Argentina on attack early in the second half.
11 Makazole Mapimpi (6.5)
Scored a great try 16 minutes from time after he made a reak down the middle.
10 Handre Pollard (8)
Mixed up his game well and got rewarded with two tries.
9 Faf de Klerk (5)
Not a good Test for the Bok No.9. Was yellow carded after already getting penalised for entering a ruck from the side. His high kicks also didn’t always go according to plan.
8 Duane Vermeulen (7.5)
Played a real captain’s innings, being a menace on the ground and working extremely hard on defence.
7 Pieter-Steph du Toit (6)
Once again a solid performance by the Bok flanker and gave a one-handed pass that looked forward to Kolbe for his try.
6 Kwagga Smith (6)
Put in an honest shift.
5 Franco Mostert (6.5)
Early knock-on and also a tackle on Nicolas Sanchez that led to the Pumas’ first try. But once again gave his all in the Green and Gold as was evident with his run and drive in the build-up to Pollard’s second try.
4 Eben Etzebeth (6.5)
One great break down the middle in the first half and looked more like the Ysterbeth we know.
3 Trevor Nyakane (7.5)
Impressive outing at setpiece time. Frans Malherbe will find it difficult to dethrone him in the No.3 jersey.
2 Bongi Mbonambi (7)
Rewarded for a strong outing with a score off the back of the maul.
1 Beast Mtawarira (7)
Showed his experience at scrum time.