Fantastic game by the Pumas, definitely the most improved side this year IMO. The mixture of enterprise, confidence, discipline and accuracy in the first half was a sight to behold - from a team that prior to the RWC looked like easy beats.
When you think how long Italy have played in the 6 nations and basically gone nowhere its pretty impressive and great for our game.
It was no surprise that the accuracy wasnt able to be sustained for 80 minutes and the fitness wasnt enough to get thru 80 minutes of that intensity, but boy, did they have a crack.
AB's then showed just how much class they have, didnt drop their heads, changed up the game plan (noticeably started attacking the breakdown), and switched to overdrive to run over the top of the Pumas. A confirmation that they have widened the gap between themselves and all other teams and a loss is not something we are likely to see in the near term.
I will say this - it is a little concerning that rugby is starting to go the way of F1.
Had exactly the same discussion with the friends I watched the game with, one of them raised the F1 comparison. I think Rutchie also spoke about it. No doubt its got to the point where its bad for the sport, it is bound to start effecting crowd numbers (outside NZ). Not quite sure what can be done about it?
Anyway, well done AB's and look out Boks!