Cameron Hanekom delivered an outstanding performance on both sides of the ball and scored the decisive try as South Africa ground out a 17-10 victory over a feisty Argentina at Estadio José Amalfitani in Buenos Aires. But the satisfaction of extending their winning streak to 12 matches was tempered by captain Siya Kolisi’s departure with a hamstring injury after just 25 minutes, throwing his availability for the opening Test against the All Blacks into serious doubt.
Key moments
3 mins – PENALTY ARGENTINA: Santiago Carreras strikes a superb long-range penalty from 47 metres on the angle to open the scoring after Cameron Hanekom was penalised for a high tackle at the first breakdown. (Argentina 3–0 South Africa)
7 mins – PENALTY SOUTH AFRICA: Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu levels from in front of the posts after Cobus Reinach is taken out with ball in hand by Pablo Matera. (Argentina 3–3 South Africa)
9 mins – TRY ARGENTINA: Argentina win a scrum penalty and kick to the corner. After setting up play in front of the posts, Pablo Matera takes the ball into contact and frees his arms to deliver a wonderful pop pass to the supporting Benjamin Grondona, who has a clear run to the line. Carreras converts from the left. (Argentina 10–3 South Africa)
21 mins – MISSED DROP GOAL SOUTH AFRICA: Feinberg-Mngomezulu attempts a drop goal after sustained Springbok pressure near the 22. It looks short initially but floats and floats before striking the crossbar. Argentina scramble the rebound clear.
25 mins – SUBSTITUTION SOUTH AFRICA: Captain Siya Kolisi limps off with a hamstring injury and is replaced by Marco van Staden after just 25 minutes in his first Test of 2026.
40 mins – TRY SOUTH AFRICA: Out of nothing. Andre Esterhuizen is hit behind the gain line by the rush defence but manages to smuggle an offload away out the back to Canan Moodie. He dummies past his immediate marker and feeds Aphelele Fassi, who finds an overlap on the left edge with a draw and pass to Edwill van der Merwe. The winger has too much gas for the covering defence and runs it all the way around to the posts. Feinberg-Mngomezulu converts. (Argentina 10–10 South Africa)
Half-time: Argentina 10–10 South Africa. A scrappy first half dominated by the kicking game and handling errors from both sides in blustery conditions. Argentina had the better of territory and possession, and their willingness to keep ball in hand and offload through contact caused the Springboks constant problems. Esterhuizen’s moment of individual brilliance — an offload that had no right to go to hand — launched the equaliser right on the stroke of half-time.
46 mins – MISSED PENALTY ARGENTINA: Carreras strikes the left upright from the 10-metre line after Tomas Rapetti’s intercept line break won the penalty. A let-off for South Africa. (Argentina 10–10 South Africa)
49 mins – SUBSTITUTIONS SOUTH AFRICA: The Bomb Squad arrives. Gerhard Steenekamp, Zachary Porthen, Ben-Jason Dixon and Cobus Wiese replace Boan Venter, Thomas du Toit, Elrigh Louw and Lood de Jager. The fresh legs immediately lift the tempo.
52 mins – HELD UP SOUTH AFRICA: South Africa steal an Argentina lineout inside the 22 and play quickly. Esterhuizen drives for the line from close range but cannot get the ball to ground. Argentina survive.
57 mins – TRY DISALLOWED SOUTH AFRICA: Johan Grobbelaar appears to force his way over from close range after sustained pressure, but the TMO intervenes and spots Marco van Staden’s arm in touch earlier in the passage of play. Lineout Argentina.
59 mins – SUBSTITUTIONS SOUTH AFRICA: Handre Pollard on for Fassi and Morne van den Berg on for Reinach. Feinberg-Mngomezulu shifts to fullback.
63 mins – TRY SOUTH AFRICA: South Africa pin Argentina in the corner with back-to-back kicks from van den Berg and Pollard, hold up the ball carrier to create a maul, and win a five-metre scrum. The Springbok pack delivers a devastating shove, wheeling the Pumas around, and number eight Hanekom controls at his feet before picking his moment and dotting down for his first Test try. Pollard converts from the right. (Argentina 10–17 South Africa)
65 mins – SUBSTITUTION SOUTH AFRICA: Esterhuizen departs for an HIA. Fassi returns and Pollard shifts to inside centre for the remainder.
80 mins – ARGENTINA DENIED: Los Pumas produce a superb 50-22 into the corner for one last shot at a levelling score. They tap a penalty and go through 15 phases with patience and wonderful handling, shifting play from right to left and back again, but Matias Moroni spills the final pass to the left wing with the try line beckoning. Full-time whistle follows.
Full-time: Argentina 10–17 South Africa
Rassie Erasmus said before the match that it would be a grind, and his prediction proved uncomfortably accurate. On a sunlit but cold and blustery afternoon in Buenos Aires, the world champions were forced to dig deep against a spirited Argentina side that featured six debutants but played with the passion and physicality that has become their trademark.
The first half belonged largely to the hosts. Felipe Contepomi’s side seized the initiative from the opening minutes, playing with a tempo and directness that repeatedly caught the Springboks on the back foot. Fast hands, direct running lines and a willingness to offload through contact disrupted any semblance of control the visitors tried to build. Wing Ignacio Mendy was a constant threat, finding four line breaks in the opening 40 minutes, while scrum-half Simon Benitez Cruz’s inventive kicking — deft chips and grubbers into the spaces behind the Springbok defensive line — kept the green and gold scrambling.
The Springboks’ kicking game, so often their primary weapon, misfired in the buffeting breeze. High kicks repeatedly drifted away from chasers, and the tactic of having a retreating winger collect the ball negated any contest in the air. Feinberg-Mngomezulu, under constant pressure from Argentina’s aggressive line speed, struggled to assert himself in the first half and was crowded relentlessly in his channel.
The Kolisi setback compounded the visitors’ difficulties. The 35-year-old captain, playing his first Test of 2026 after a hamstring injury, lasted just 25 minutes before limping off holding his hamstring once more. It was exactly the scenario Erasmus had hoped to avoid, and Kolisi was candid about the blow afterwards.
“I hurt my hamstring again, unfortunately. So I’ll go for a scan and see how far it is,” Kolisi said. “But yeah, it’s really tough. But I can’t be sad about it. There’s nothing I can do now than to go and have a scan and then see how long I’m out for.”
He added: “We have a huge amount of respect for them, and we could easily have lost this game. Home or away, they’re one of the toughest teams we play all year.”
That South Africa reached half-time level owed much to their defensive resolve and then one moment of individual brilliance from Esterhuizen. Caught behind the gain line by Argentina’s rush defence, the big centre had no right to free the ball, but somehow smuggled an offload out the back of the tackle to Moodie. The outside centre dummied past his marker, and two passes later van der Merwe was streaking down the touchline and around behind the posts for his sixth try in seven Tests. It was the Springboks’ only moment of genuine attacking quality in the entire first half.
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The second period was a different contest. The introduction of the Bomb Squad — Steenekamp, Porthen, Dixon and Wiese arriving as a quartet in the 49th minute — shifted the physical battle decisively in South Africa’s favour. Where the Pumas had matched and at times bettered the visitors in the collisions during the first half, the fresh forwards tilted the scrum, improved the maul and brought more power to the carry game.
South Africa dominated territory and possession through the third quarter but Argentina’s defence was heroic. Esterhuizen was held up over the line. Grobbelaar appeared to have scored under the posts only for the TMO to correctly rule it out for van Staden’s hand in touch earlier in the passage. The Springboks kept coming, and the dam finally broke in the 63rd minute.
Back-to-back kicks from van den Berg and Pollard pinned Argentina in the corner. The Springboks held up the ball carrier to create a maul turnover, won the ensuing five-metre scrum, and the pack — with Wiese and Etzebeth providing the shove — drove the Pumas backwards. Hanekom controlled the ball at his feet, picked his moment and dotted down for his first Test try. It was a fitting reward for the Bulls number eight, who was the outstanding player on the park. He finished with 13 carries for 82 run metres and was a force at the breakdown on both sides of the ball.
The closing stages were anything but comfortable. Argentina produced a superb 50-22 from flanker Matera to set up one final attack, then tapped a penalty and went through 15 agonising phases inside the Springbok 22 after the clock had gone red. The handling through the phases was superb, shifting play from one side of the field to the other, but when the ball was finally flung wide to the left edge, Moroni could not cling on to the final pass with the try line at his mercy. The replacement back was in tears at the final whistle.
Erasmus admitted his side had looked disjointed but praised their character. “We looked leg-weary early on, gave up a lot of territory, and made errors which we knew were likely with seven or eight players having played very little rugby in the last six or seven weeks,” he said. “Argentina play a different style of rugby, and the stadium is genuinely intimidating, but it’s a win although it wasn’t pretty and perfect. That said, we are happy with the result and with the way we ground it out.”
He added: “I have to give credit to them. They are a very proud rugby nation, and I always say they’ve got that same fight in them that we have back home. They’re passionate, and they never stop. What pleased me today was that we won the physical battle.”
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Beyond the result, the fitness audit delivered mixed returns. Etzebeth was particularly impressive, playing the full 80 minutes despite his long injury layoff — a feat that was no doubt partly necessitated by Kolisi’s early departure, which left the veteran lock to lead in his captain’s absence. De Jager got through 49 minutes of work before making way for Wiese. Feinberg-Mngomezulu showed early signs of rust but grew into the game and proved himself ready for selection against the All Blacks. Hooker and Moodie both completed 80 minutes.
Esterhuizen’s concussion — his second in successive matches — is another concern alongside Kolisi’s hamstring. The veteran centre departed for an HIA in the 65th minute, with Pollard shifting to inside centre for the remainder.
The Springboks will return to South Africa in two groups on Sunday and Monday before reuniting with the 15 players who remained behind in preparation for the Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry series. The first Test against the All Blacks at Ellis Park is less than two weeks away, and while this scrappy victory provided a useful workout, the performance will have given Dave Rennie’s coaching staff plenty of ideas. Argentina, meanwhile, face Australia at home in San Salvador de Jujuy on 29 August.
Teams
Argentina: 15 Geronimo Prisciantelli, 14 Rodrigo Isgro, 13 Lucio Cinti, 12 Faustino Sanchez Valarolo, 11 Ignacio Mendy, 10 Santiago Carreras, 9 Simon Benitez Cruz, 8 Joaquin Moro, 7 Benjamin Grondona, 6 Pablo Matera (c), 5 Tomas Lavanini, 4 Guido Petti, 3 Francisco Moreno, 2 Ignacio Ruiz, 1 Boris Wenger.
Replacements: 16 Leonel Oviedo, 17 Mayco Vivas, 18 Tomas Rapetti, 19 Efrain Elias, 20 Juan Penoucos, 21 Juan Martin Scelzo, 22 Agustin Moyano, 23 Matias Moroni.
South Africa: 15 Aphelele Fassi, 14 Edwill van der Merwe, 13 Canan Moodie, 12 Andre Esterhuizen, 11 Ethan Hooker, 10 Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, 9 Cobus Reinach, 8 Cameron Hanekom, 7 Elrigh Louw, 6 Siya Kolisi (c), 5 Lood de Jager, 4 Eben Etzebeth, 3 Thomas du Toit, 2 Johan Grobbelaar, 1 Boan Venter.
Replacements: 16 Jan-Hendrik Wessels, 17 Gerhard Steenekamp, 18 Zachary Porthen, 19 Ben-Jason Dixon, 20 Cobus Wiese, 21 Marco van Staden, 22 Morne van den Berg, 23 Handre Pollard.
Match details
Argentina 10 (Try: Grondona; Conversion: Carreras 1/1; Penalty: Carreras 1/1)
South Africa 17 (Tries: van der Merwe, Hanekom; Conversions: Feinberg-Mngomezulu 1/1, Pollard 1/1; Penalty: Feinberg-Mngomezulu 1/1)
Half-time: 10–10
Venue: Estadio José Amalfitani, Buenos Aires
Referee: Christophe Ridley (England)
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