A couple of Springbok records are set to tumble when the world champions square up against Argentina on Saturday, as the South Africans look to extend their winning streak over the Pumas in Johannesburg.
– Eben Etzebeth has played in 19 Tests against the Pumas and becomes the first Springbok to play in 20 Test matches against Argentina. Etzebeth will surpass former Springbok captain and hooker John Smit’s 111 Test caps on Saturday, making him the fourth most capped Springbok.
– Malcolm Marx needs one try to equal Schalk Burger’s record of 16 Test tries, the most by a Springbok forward.
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– South Africa have won the last six Tests against Argentina, conceding an average of just 16 points per game during that term. The Springboks’ last defeat to Los Pumas came in 2018 in Mendoza.
– South Africa have won their last three Tests at home, scoring exactly 17 points in the first halves of each of those three games. They have not lost at home to Argentina since August 2015, picking up nine straight wins in such fixtures since then.
– Argentina have won two of their last four Tests away from home, including a 34-31 win over Australia in their last Test. The last time they won back-to-back games outside Argentina was in November 2020.
A formidable loose trio and an inexperienced half-back pairing, @mark_keohane and Zels unpack the Springbok team selection🇿🇦 pic.twitter.com/Mw3J6n57Mt
— SA Rugby magazine (@SARugbymag) July 25, 2023
– South Africa have logged one win and one loss in the 2023 Rugby Championship. Only once before in the history of the competition (including the Tri-Nations) have the Springboks won multiple games in a World Cup year (W2 L1 in 2019).
– Argentina will be looking to win multiple games in a single edition of the Rugby Championship for the second year in a row and just the third time ever after picking up two wins in each of 2018 and 2022.
– South Africa have carried the ball for 510 metres per game in 2023, the most of any team in the Rugby Championship. Argentina (352m per game) have carried for fewer metres than any other team.
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– Argentina have crossed the gainline on only 47% of their total carries in this edition of the Rugby Championship, the lowest rate of any team at the tournament and 10 percentage points lower than first-ranked South Africa (57%).
– Pablo Matera has made four offloads this season, more than any other player in the competition and twice as many as any South African player.
– Matias Moroni has scored four tries in his last seven Tests against South Africa, including one in each of his last two games against them, although he has not scored in any of his five appearances since he last faced the Springboks.
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*Stats via Opta Stats Platform
Photo: Deryck Foster/BackpagePix