Rugby World Cup 2023 semi-final: All Blacks crush Argentina
In a one-sided semi-final, the All Blacks largely dominated Argentina with a final score of 44 to 6. The Pumas never managed to find a solution against a sharp New Zealand team.
From the first minutes of play, the All Blacks imposed their superiority by adopting an offensive strategy based on obtaining touches in the Argentine camp. This approach quickly bore fruit, with a try from Will Jordan in the 11th minute. Despite a successful penalty by Argentina at the start of the match, the Pumas failed to find their rhythm and accumulated technical errors.
The All Blacks, meanwhile, took advantage of every opportunity to score tries. Jordie Barrett scored the second try in the 15th minute, followed by Shannon Frizell just before half-time. The New Zealanders then hit the nail on the head in the second half, with tries from Aaron Smith and Frizell again. Will Jordan even scored a hat-trick, performing a magnificent action in which he recovered his own kick to score.
The Argentines, for their part, experienced many difficulties in attack, their actions often being aborted by handball errors or good New Zealand defense. Despite their tenacity, they never managed to get back into the game.
The All Blacks have therefore fully deserved their place in the final of the Rugby World Cup, where they will face the winner of the second semi-final between South Africa and England.
This victory confirms the rise in power of the New Zealanders, who have established themselves as one of the best teams in the competition. It now remains to be seen whether they can maintain this level of play during the long-awaited final.
In the meantime, rugby fans around the world can rejoice at having witnessed such a spectacular semi-final, marked by the undisputed domination of the All Blacks.