SportsMole previews the Rugby Championship clash between Argentina and South Africa.
Argentina are completely out of the race for the Rugby Championship, but they can spoil the party for South Africa when they meet at Twickenham on October 4.
The Springboks have to simply win the game to be crowned southern hemisphere champions for a second consecutive year, a first in their long history.
Match preview
Argentina's inconsistency is what let them down in this year's edition of the Rugby Championship, as they won two and lost two in their four games against New Zealand and Australia earlier in the campaign.
However, that win against the All Blacks should not be brushed aside, as they went into the break level at 13 apiece, and came into the second half raring to go, eventually securing a 29-23 victory.
The Pumas put in two brave performances against the Aussies down under, losing by just four points in the first clash, but bagging the win in their second meeting by 28-26.
The South American side are no longer the whipping boys of the competition, and have shown recently that they can compete with international rugby's traditional giants.
This finale should have been played in their homeland, but the Argentine Rugby Union (UAR) saw an opportunity to maximise attendance and revenue by hosting the match in London.
There is no doubt that it will remove some of the advantage that they would have had if this battle were taking place in front of their home fans.
Having said that, by the time this match kicks off, the Pumas will have already gained a massive following from the other corner of the globe, where either New Zealand or Australia will be cheering them on to beat the Boks.
Argentina have won one of their last 10 meetings with the Springboks, which arrived by a single point in this competition last year at Santiago del Estero, which they will take note of as they aim to spoil the world champions' party on Saturday.
South Africa are on the brink of creating history for themselves, winning the southern hemisphere competition in back-to-back years for the first time ever.
Although this campaign started rather poorly for them, with one win in their first three games, they have bounced back emphatically to be in complete control of their Rugby Championship destiny.
Massive wins against New Zealand in Wellington and Argentina last week in Durban propelled them to the top of the standings, with a healthy points difference of +55.
Rassie Erasmus's side are in the driving seat and just need to win the game, as four points only would require Australia or New Zealand to record hefty victories over the other to overcome the world champions' points difference.
A bonus-point triumph would confirm South Africa's status as 2025 Rugby Championship winners, an ideal way to prepare for the upcoming end-of-year northern hemisphere tour.
Three wins in their last four outings suggest that the Springboks should see this home, especially since they are travelling to London, where there is a massive South African fanbase.
Argentina Rugby Championship form:
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South Africa Rugby Championship form:
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Team News
Argentina coach Felipe Contepomi made seven changes in total from the side that were demolished 67-30 in Durban last week, three of those are in the pack and four in the backline.
Geronimo Prisciantelli gets only his second-ever cap at flyhalf, part of a new halfback pairing with Simon Benitez Cruz, who comes in for Gonzalo Garcia, after the latter was taken off last weekend due to a concussion.
Consequently, Santiago Carreras moves to fullback, while Juan Cruz Mallia makes his way to the left wing to replace Mateo Carreras.
Contepomi decided to revert to the lock pair that were part of the winning side in Australia, with Guido Petti and Pedro Rubiolo getting the nod ahead of Franco Molina and Lucas Paulos.
Joaquin Oviedo makes way for Santiago Grondona at number eight, and the coach has opted for a 6-2 split on the bench to compete with the physicality of the Springboks.
On the note of physicality, Ox Nche slots back into the front row, after withdrawing just before kick-off last weekend, which is Rassie's only change for the grand finale from the team that hammered the Pumas.
South Africa head into this game with a 5-3 split on the bench, where there are some changes, as Grant Williams, Jesse Kriel and Bongi Mbonambi make a return this week.
Captain Siya Kolisi will get his 98th cap this Saturday, two behind the century mark, where he will become the ninth Springbok to reach triple figures in history.
All eyes will be on flyhalf Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, who scored 37 points on his own last week, the most by a South African in a single test.
The Stormers number 10 has already bagged 95 points in his international career, and can reach a century in scored points this weekend.
Argentina starting lineup:
15 Santiago Carreras, 14 Bautista Delguy, 13 Justo Piccardo, 12 Santiago Chocobares, 11 Juan Cruz Mallia, 10 Geronimo Prisciantelli, 9 Simon Cruz Benitez, 8 Santiago Grondona, 7 Marcos Kremer, 6 Pablo Matera, 5 Pedro Rubiolo, 4 Guido Petti, 3 Joel Sclavi, 2 Julian Montoya (captain), 1 Mayco Vivas
Replacements:
16 Ignacio Ruiz, 17 Boris Wenger, 18 Francisco Coria Marchetti, 19 Franco Molina, 20 Juan Gonzalez, 21 Joaquín Oviedo, 22 Agustin Moyano, 23 Rodrigo Isgro
South Africa starting lineup:
15 Damian Willemse, 14 Cheslin Kolbe, 13 Canan Moodie, 12 Damian de Allende, 11 Ethan Hooker, 10 Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, 9 Cobus Reinach, 8 Jasper Wiese, 7 Pieter-Steph du Toit, 6 Siya Kolisi (captain), 5 Ruan Nortje, 4 Eben Etzebeth, 3 Thomas du Toit, 2 Malcolm Marx, 1 Ox Nche
Replacements:
16 Bongi Mbonambi, 17 Jan-Hendrik Wessels, 18 Wilco Louw, 19 RG Snyman, 20 Kwagga Smith, 21 Grant Williams, 22 Manie Libbok, 23 Jesse Kriel
Head To Head
The Springboks dominate the head-to-head record against Argentina, winning 34 of the 39 tests they've played, with the Pumas winning four in that sequence.
With a win percentage of 87.1% and an official win against this opponent in London previously (2015 RWC), it's difficult to see anything but victory for the green and gold.
© PA Photos
We say: Argentina 21-35 South Africa
Last week's Durban demolition demonstrated what the world champions are capable of. With only two defeats to Argentina across the last 13 meetings since 2018, the Springboks are favourites to bag back-to-back Rugby Championships.
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