Argentina vs Australia
Argentina will be playing for pride after five losses on the trot. The scoreline in the last match is not a true reflection of the match as they had penalties in promising positions and twice had them overturned due to ill-discipline from Marcos Kremer. His a penalty waiting to happen and Coach Ledesma must seriously look at dropping him. The Australians were happy to feed of the Pumas mistakes and if Argentina can fix their ill-discipline then we could see a tight game. The Aussies have rested Marika Koroibete for this match and I feel this is a mistake as a winning combination should not be tampered with. His defensive duties will be sorely missed as his replacement Jordan Petaia isn’t a great defender. The Aussies had the upper hand in the forwards and especially dominated the scrums. Argentina once the leading nation with scrumming has regressed alarmingly and will be hoping for an improved performance from their front row.
TIP: The surprise selection of Santiago Carreras at 10 has not worked as he struggles to get the backline going but maybe he just needs time in that position. He needs help from his centres but they are both very physical and seldom pass choosing to take the contact instead. This prevents dangerous players like Emiliano Boffelli from getting into the game. The Aussies have no such issues as Quade Cooper has been fantastic at igniting the backline. The undoubted star of the Aussies resurgence is Samu Kerevi. The blockbuster centre always breaks the first tackle and the most impressively seems to find a team mate that he can set free. He must rank as one of the most devastating attacker 12s in the game right now. The Wallabies are heavily favoured to win this match and I’m also tipping them for the win. The best odds on this bet are as follows: Worldsportsbetting 1.17, Playabets 1.08 and Sunbet 1.11
HEAD TO HEAD STATS
Argentina vs Australia
- In the last five matches between these teams there have been three Aussie wins and two draws.
- The last time Australia lost to Argentina was in 2018.
- Argentina has only beaten the Aussies once in Australia in 18 attempts.
Latest results for both teams
Australia beat Argentina 27-8 in their last match.
PREDICTION
The Australian team’s massive turnaround can be attributed to many factors but the leadership of Michael Hooper is fantastic and even in defeat he was the player that stood out. The Pumas need a similar display from their skipper Julian Montoya. He needs to lead from the front as this is a very young Pumas line up. The battle between the forwards will again go a long way to deciding who wins this match and this is an obvious advantage to Australia. They have great ball carriers in Taniela Tupou and Rob Valetini who are almost unstoppable when they get a head of steam. Not only is Tupou great around the field but he is a monster in the scrums as well. The all-round attack of the Aussies looks much more balanced and the Pumas discipline makes it very difficult for them to contain the Wallabies. It’s for these reasons that I predict as Aussie win by less than 14 points
- Probable Starting XVs
Argentina
15 Juan Cruz Mallia, 14 Matias Moroni, 13 Lucio Cinti, 12 Santiago Chocobares, 11 Emiliano Boffelli, 10 Santiago Carreras, 9 Gonzalo Bertranou, 8 Rodrigo Bruni, 7 Marcos Kremer, 6 Juan Martin Gonzalez, 5 Tomas Lavanini, 4 Guido Petti, 3 Enrique Pieretto, 2 Julian Montoya (captain), 1 Rodrigo Martinez.
Australia
15 Reece Hodge, 14 Jordan Petaia, 13 Len Ikitau, 12 Samu Kerevi, 11 Andrew Kellaway, 10 Quade Cooper, 9 Nic White, 8 Rob Valetini, 7 Michael Hooper (captain), 6 Pete Samu, 5 Darcy Swain, 4 Izack Rodda, 3 Taniela Tupou, 2 Folau Fainga’a, 1 James Slipper.
Odds for this bet
The best odds on the Australia victory are as follows:
Worldsportsbetting 1.17
Playabets 1.08
Sunbet 1.11
Odds comparison on the Argentina handicap :
The complete odds on the Argentina handicap:
Worldsportsbetting (+15.5) 1.90
Sunbet (+15.5) 1.95
Playabets (+16.5) 1.79
Predictions and Odds in details
Argentina will take heart from the fact that they drew twice last year against the Aussies and they need to go back to that blueprint which involved a rush defence and maintaining discipline. They also need Boffelli to be accurate with his goal kicking as he missed a couple of easy kicks. The Aussies will want to use their rolling maul as they got good metres with mauling and the Pumas kept giving away penalties. The halfbacks of the Pumas need to get center Lucio Cinti more involved in the game and he was their best player in the last match. I’m expecting a close match but the Aussie replacement bench will win it for them in the second half. The bookies are offering very poor returns on the Aussie win therefore I suggest the Pumas on the handicap. The best odds on this bet are as follows: Worldsportsbetting (+15.5) 1.90, Sunbet (+15.5) 1.95 and Playabets (+16.5) 1.79
Sports crazy fan that follows all major sport but the game with the oval ball is my real passion. Was an age level rugby coach and a huge supporter of the Springboks and diehard Liverpool man. I’m an experienced punter and sports writer whose predictions/tips are sure to stir up the emotions. I love the occasional wager on the underdog.
