With former RWC winning coach Sir Graham Henry engaged by Argentina as an advisor it was always going to be an apprehensive All Blacks side who took on the Pumas in Wellington on the weekend. The Pumas had some reason to be confident going into the match after their fantastic draw against the Springboks in Mendoza two weeks ago 16-16 but the weather wasn’t too kind to them. Both teams took the field in driving rain which would have suited the home team who play wet weather rugby on a regular basis but as expected from this Pumas side, they didn’t fail to cause the All Blacks grief. In fact they scored the first try of the match when veteran prop Rodrigo Roncero got the football over the line after some bruising clashed between both sides. The All Blacks managed to keep in the game when Aaron Cruden, a late replacement for the injured Daniel Carter, landed penalties in the 9th and 24th minutes with the All Blacks again trying far too hard resulting in a large number of unforced errors. The their credit the Pumas defense made it hard to the All Blacks to build too much continuity with both sides pounding each other in atrocious conditions in what was more of an arm wrestle than a game of rugby. The Argentinians like to play this type of rugby which was confirmed to close quarters due to the elements and they match the All Blacks blow for blow in what was an absorbing contest between two very passionate teams. Thankfully the second half was more favourable for rugby wind the wind and rain abating but not before it caused havoc when the winds peaked at 160km/hr in Wellington which tore roofs off houses and uprooted trees and caused the power cut which plunged Wellington Stadium into darkness for close to 30 minutes. After fifty one minutes into the match Cruden put the All Blacks further in front 9-5 with another penalty but the game changed for the worse when Pumas flanker Julio Farias Cabellos was sinbinned in the 59th minute by French referee Romain Poite for deliberately knocking down the ball from a pass from Corey Jane. The All Blacks didn’t waste this advantage when centre Conrad Smith drew two defenders before offloading to Ma’a Nomu who unselfishly put Julian Savea over in the left hand corner to stretch the All Blacks lead out to 14-5. Victory for the All Blacks was sealed with nine minutes left on the clock when Jane was the recipient of great long pass from Cruden after an excellent set piece from the All Blacks three-quarters to put the flying winger in the right corner. The conversion by Cruden from the sideline was successful to give the All Blacks a much deserved victory 21-5 to keep their Rugby Championship in tact with the only team to have an unbeaten record. Their success against Pumas was the All Blacks 13th straight Test win and they remain unbeaten against Argentina having won all fifteen previous Test matches which is nothing to be ashamed of. The Pumas against played with a great deal of passion and commitment and if they can contain the Wallabies backline their forwards will more than challenge the Wallabies forward by their no thrills and in your face approach. The All Blacks continue to set the standard for International rugby but it must to frustrating for coach Steve Hansen to watch his players strive so hard to impress him but at the same time make a number of elementary mistakes. There are times in Test rugby when holding onto possession is more important than trying fifty fifty plays that almost always don’t come off with the opposition regaining the football. If they would have had a more conservative approach against the Wallabies they come have put forty points on the scoreboard if not for their errors. But if they get it right they will be unstoppable with the next challenger being the Springboks in Dunedin who are themselves struggling to remain in the game and once again their game may be All Black! Mark Ella