Wales 17 Argentina 29: World Cup quarter-final as it happened

Wales 17 Argentina 26

Anyway, Argentina, like all of us, will now watch the evening’s events in Paris with a keen eye. Will Ireland or New Zealand meet them in next week’s semi-final? We’ll find out later, but for now stay tuned for a report on this one.

This was a game low on quality. Wales’ handling was poor, and despite their qualms with the refereeing is ultimately what cost them. Argentina weren’t much better, not to mention their poor discipline for the bones of an hour, but as they did in Japan, they came out on top in the defining moments as their much-vaunted maul plus a speculative intercept got them over the line.

This game hinged on a number of big moments. Firstly, the decision not to card Guido Petti for this head collision with Nick Tompkins.

Then the try from Joel Sclavi which followed shortly after, with Wales convinced they should have had a holding on call in the build-up.

Then this scintillating try-saving tackle from Moroni on Rees-Zammit...

Before Sanchez put the result beyond doubt with this speculative intercept.

FULL-TIME: WALES 17 ARGENTINA 29

Argentina have the last say with a Sanchez penalty just to stretch out that winning margin. What a second half from Argentina as they come down from 10-0 down to win by a margin of 12.

TRY ARGENTINA: Game over! Argentina have their semi-final all but confirmed. Nicholas Sanchez with the interception, he read the pre-planned move from Wales, picking off the pass from Costellow and sprinting away under the sticks. It was a risk, if Costellow picked a different pass Wales would have broken the line but he who dares wins and all that. Boffeli adds the extras and Argentina are out of sight.

As the players take on some water ahead of a scrum, here is that crucial try-saver from Moroni.

76 mins: Wales get turned over, earn it back on kick chase but then Domachowski spills after a big shot from behind he didn’t see coming. Handling errors at this stage are to be expected with both sides out on their feet, but this has been a common thread throughout for Wales.

75 mins: Biggar is now off as his tank is empty. Tompkins returns from his HIA to replace him. Meanwhile at the lineout 5m from their own line, Argentina nearly get caught over the try line but they recover through a carry from Kremer. Bazan Velez clears.

75 mins: WHAT A TACKLE! Moroni has saved Argentina. Dyer makes the break, he can’t find the support but Rees-Zammit looks to be in a phase later. He dives for the line, but Moroni comes across to somehow barge him into touch before the grounding. What a moment.

74 mins: As long as Wales keep dropping the ball, you would bet against them. Williams goes to pick the ball at the ruck, but a stray boot forces a spill. Not his fault, but emblematic of Wales’ display.

72 mins: Wales get some relief as Sclavi is pinged at the scrum. They have offered very little in this half, but it’s only one chance Wales need given the narrow deficit. With Biggar on the park still, you wouldn’t bet against them.

Here is that non-card call from Karl Dickson. I think it was the right call, despite Petti making contact with Tompkins’ head.

70 mins: Wales fluff their lines with a spill at the lineout. Another Welsh handling error, for all they will focus on Dickson’s calls, or lack thereof, Wales’ handling has killed them in this second half.

TRY ARGENTINA: Joel Sclavi levels things! Dan Biggar is screaming at Dickson, convinced that Morgan is in over the ball for the jackal. Dickson lets play continue and a phase later Sclavi barges his way over from short range. Another refereeing talking point I’m sure... in any case, Boffeli slots the extras and Argentina lead.

67 mins: Argentina spill the ball just short of the line! However, there’s another penalty with Wales caught offside. Dickson warns Jac Morgan, there will be a card next time.

65 mins: Wales survive, for now. They hold up a dangerous maul over the line, but they did initially infringe. Back for another penalty, which is kicked straight back into the corner.

Wow. There is head contact, but Dickson says there is no foul play. To be fair, I can see the logic. Petti absolutely lines up Biggar from miles out, nailing him with an illegal clear. However, Tompkins was knocked into his path by a different collision, but Petti has no time to adjust and ends up clearing Biggar after making contact with Tompkins’ head. It’s a nasty collision, but I think this is the right call. Petti was bent at the waste and made contact with Biggar’s sternum, only for Tompkins to get in the way at the last second. Unfortunate, but the right call.

64 mins: Argentina have a penalty inside the 22 after a hand on the floor. However, there looked to be a dangerous clearout on Tompkins and we are checking with the TMO. Argentina could be in trouble here...

62 mins: Oh no. Rees-Zammit is at fullback now with Liam Williams off inured. His first act in the new position? To kick the ball over the dead-ball line from his own 22. A big mistake that gifts Argentina a big attacking opportunity deep in Welsh territory.

TRY TOMOS WILLIAMS: Argentina gift Wales a score. The previous penalty took Wales up to the 22. In the phaseplay, Argentina are in control, knocking Wales back play after play. However, someone forgets to man the ruck, leaving open a gaping hole for Williams to pick and go through and score under the posts. Biggar converts and out of nowhere Wales are ahead once more.

55 mins: Argentina had cleaned up their discipline in the first 15 minutes of the half, but Bello ends that by giving away a silly penalty. He takes the defender too far from the ruck right in front of referee Dickson.

53 mins: Oh wow. Of all the Welsh errors, that is the most egregious. On first phase, Biggar pops a gentle pass to Tompkins who takes his eye off it, it bursts his hands and smacks him square in the face. Wales continue to be poor with their handling.

52 mins: That’s a monster maul from Argentina. We spoke before the match about how they made the most metres from mauls in the pool stages and it told there. After kicking clear, Cubelli think he has a clear run to a loose ball deep inside the 22 but Dickson spotted an Argentinian knock-on in the tackle.

48 mins: From 55m out, in a central position, Boffeli curls it back inside the upright beautifully. He had the legs, and the accuracy. Argentina lead!

47 mins: The momentum is completely with Argentina now. Wales take them through the phases in attack but Kremer pops up to win the jackal penalty and you can see the energy boost that is for Argentina. Meanwhile Liam Williams is down in a heap receiving treatment after being emptied by Petti in a tackle. It was a monster shot, but fair. It looks like Argentina are going to take a long-range kick at goal from inside their own half.

44 mins: One-point game. Boffeli adds his third kick from straight in front of the sticks.

43 mins: Wales jackal well under the shadow off their own points but Argentina had advantage. Reffell failed to roll away at a previous ruck. Another easy kick for Boffeli coming up.

42 mins: Carreras threatens again with a left-footed grubber in behind. Rees-Zammit gets to it first but he can only deflect the ball into touch under pressure. Argentina lineout deep inside the 22.

41 mins: Right then. We’re back underway in Marseille, Carreras kicking off for Argentina. The restart is a good one as the chase bats it back onto the Argentinian side.

Argentina have made 39 carries over the gainline to Wales’ 26. Michael Cheika’s side have been able to break the line, but a lack of composure allied to a good Welsh scramble has cost them. If they shore up what happens after the line break and don’t let Wales pull away with penalties, they should be in a good position.

Argentina have also gained more territory from their kicking game so far, kicking the ball 16 times for 676 metres compared to 14 times for 414m from Wales.

A bad-tempered end to a scrappy half. Adams is lucky his shoulder charge didn’t lead to a yellow, but it did let Argentina narrow the gap to just four at the break.

Before then, both sides had brief positive moments in attack with a handful of linebreaks, but all of Wales’ good work has been undone by handling errors while Argentina continually shoot themselves in the foot with penalties. Their discipline has gotten worse since Karl Dickson took over for injured referee Jaco Peyper, not sure if there is anything in the personnel change that doesn’t suit them.

Half-time: Wales 10 Argentina 6

Absolute madness from new referee Karl Dickson. He says Adams tried to wrap so it wasn’t a shoulder charge, I have no idea what footage he was watching as Adams had his arm firmly by his side. It was a cheap shot after the ball was dead and there was definitely no wrap. Anyway, Adams stays on the park and Argentina will kick an easy shot at goal to take us to half-time.

Josh Adams could be in trouble here. He shoulder charges Cubelli off the ball after a knock-on, and that’s what started the whole fracas. Should be a yellow.

40 mins: Santiago Carreras makes a scintillating break after catching a high ball but Argentina butcher the following attack after Kremer spills. They are knocked back from the 22 to halfway, but a Wales offside penalty lets them off the hook. Now there’s a fight breaking out. Not quite sure why... We are checking with the TMO.

39 mins: Boffeli narrows the gap to 7 from straight in front of the posts.

37 mins: Argentina’s attack is fast, frantic and they look like turning the ball over on every phase but somehow hang on. They make no ground after 10 phases but Morgan gives away a cynical offside penalty. Argentina will take the 3.

36 mins: Wales make a mess of the attack inside the 22 and Argentina then win a scrum penalty, a rare whistle blown in their favour. They need a score before half-time, you would think.

33 mins: Copy and paste again, this time for an Argentinian penalty offence. They looked to be in after regathering a kick and chase, but their forwards hadn’t retreated and are pinged for offside. Biggar kicks into the 22.

32 mins: At this stage I could just copy and paste each blog post. Another Wales handling error. This time it’s Rowlands who spills short of contact, but that blame goes to Davies whose poor pass was impossible to gather. Davies’ accuracy has been poor thus far.

29 mins: Wow. Biggar has shanked his kick to the left. It was from a central position close to halfway, not a difficult angle at all and definitely within his range. A poor effort.

28 mins: It didn’t last long. On the first attack after winning a penalty, Argentina cough one up as Jac Morgan gets in over the ball. Another chance here for Biggar off the tee.

27 mins: Penalty Argentina! Mateo Carreras saves the day by poaching a penalty on the floor metres from his own line. A huge moment for Argentina to reverse their discipline fortunes.

26 mins: North has butchered a try there. Breaking a tackle out wide, all he has to do is feed Adams on the inside for the score but he throws it behind him, forcing the spill. Wales did have the advantage as Lavanini tackled a Welsh player off the ball. Handling errors from Wales and ill-discipline from Argentina is turning what started off as an exciting contest into a dull affair.

24 mins: The accuracy from both sides is poor. This is just a poor standard, really. Elias misses his jumper at the lineout, overthrowing everyone. Argentina gather and break but then a spill from Martin Gonzales ends the attack.

23 mins: Williams spills the kick-off but Argentina let him off the hook with a poor kick in behind from Carreras. Cinti then goes in off his feet on the deck as another penalty frustrates Argentina.

21 mins: No mistake from Biggar. Straight in front, 30m out, too easy for him.

20 mins: Another couple of handling errors from both sides, for good measure, but Wales get out of jail thanks to an offside from Argentinian prop Gallo. A poor, soft penalty which Biggar should punish off the tee.

A look back on Dan Biggar’s try which is the difference between the two teams.

17 mins: Wales were looking good, continually working past the gainline but another drop costs them. That’s the fourth handling error they’ve made in the early stages, Davies again the culprit on this occasion.

16 mins: Wow. I don’t think I”ve ever seen this in rugby. Referee Jaco Peyper has just brought the captains together to tell them that his achilles has gone. That means he can’t continue, so his assistant, Karl Dickson, is now the man in charge.

TRY DAN BIGGAR: Wales have threatened with their first phase attack but this time it comes up trumps. After opening up Argentina in midfield, Liam Williams actually slips. It looks like the momentum is gone, but Wales recover, get quick ball, break the line again as a series of offloads sends Biggar under the posts. He converts his own score.

13 mins: Now Argentina come up with the error. After another set of double-digit phases, a poor pass to Carreras sees the ball roll back into the Argentina half before his pass under pressure is spilled by Boffeli. Argentina have had 77 per cent of the possession so far but nothing to show for it.

10 mins: Wales’ handling is all over the shop. This time Morgan puts on his dancing shoes, beating a defender beautifully with his footwork before breaking down the left. He has Davies on his inside on the support line but he now spills an attempted offload. That was a big chance.

9 mins: Rees-Zammit has been lively. Again he attacks down the right, no kick this time but his attempted one-handed offload leads to a knock forward.

8 mins: Deja-vu. Wales work a good opportunity for Rees-Zammit on first phase but his chip and chase is once again mopped up by Boffeli.

7 mins: From one kicking mistake to another. Carreras this time slices his attempted garryowen out on the full. Wales lineout inside the Argentinian half.

6 mins: He’s missed it! It was from a narrow angle 10m in from touch, but Boffeli would have backed himself to make that from inside the 22. He’s hooked it left as Wales survive.

5 mins: Argentina lose it on the Welsh line but they had a penalty advantage. Ryan Elias was offside as Wales scrambled. Boffeli calls for the tee at the end of a long, patient set of phases.

4 mins: Brilliant from Argentina. Mallia takes a high ball under pressure, allowing for a break down the right on the next phase. Wales are set for a kick, Carreras spots this and feints a high ball before attacking down the understaffed win. 10 phases later, Argentina have worked their way to within 5m of the line...

2 mins: An early break for Wales but Argentina mop up well. A long, flat ball beats the narrow defence and sends Rees-Zammit away down the flank. His chip and chase into the 22 is dangerous given his pace, but Boffeli reads it well to come across from his opposite flank and get to the ball first.

1 min: They’re underway in Marseille! Dan Biggar and Wales kick things off, the ball flying long into the Argentinian 22. Boffeli gathers and makes the first carry before his teammates work the opportunity to clear to touch.

Kick-off approaches. The teams have made their way out onto the field at the Stade Velodrome and our lining up for the anthems.

The teams will hold a minute’s silence for those who died in recent events in Israel and Palestine.

They’ll kick a lot, our aerial skills will have to be good and we’ll have to play the territory as well.

—  Wales boss Warren Gatland ahead of kick-off

They’re [Wales] very good with that hold-up tackling, our work around the ball carry, the ruck, the decisions to play and not play, they’ll be very important factors in the game.

—  Argentina coach Michael Cheika

[ Alchemist Gatland aiming to concoct more Wales magic against Argentina ]

Here’s what the boffins say about this weekend’s matches:

Given Wales’ penchant for playing without the ball, smothering attacks and waiting for mistakes, you would think a match-up against an Argentinian side that is reliant on moments of magic and has a history of ill-discipline bodes well for Warren Gatland’s side.

One area Argentina may have the upper hand? The maul.

Per the above Opta numbers, Argentina’s lineout has been incredibly accurate while the metres they make per maul is impressive. That said, in Adam Beard, Wales have one of the world’s best defensive maul proponents.

Wales have set-piece strengths of their own. They have a 96 per cent scrum success rate and are the only nation to rank in the top five of World Cup teams for both lineout and scrum success. By contrast, and very unusually for an Argentinian side, their scrum has not been good, with only an 87 per cent success rate.

As for Argentina, well they’ve been disappointing but still find themselves in a quarter-final (no thanks to that lopsided World Cup draw...). Many backed them to beat England and win their pool, but that first game was a complete non-entity, England pulling away for a dominant 27-10 win.

Expected wins against Samoa and Chile steadied the ship somewhat, only for a bizarre clash against Japan to ultimately prove the decider. Argentina looked completely out of control of the context, allowing Japan to build possession and territory. But every time Michael Cheika’s side ventured forward, a moment of brilliance saw them break the line and score.

The stats bear out that eye-test summary. Per Opta, Argentina only were expected to score 22.6 points. They ended up drastically out-performing that, scoring 39 in their victory. Poor Japanese defence or scintillating Argentinian attack? Probably a bit of both, but one thing that is for sure is Wales’ defence, which has been by and large excellent, granted against mostly poor times, will be harder to break down.

As the above Tweet (Xeet??) shows, Wales are probably the least attack-minded side remaining in the competition. That isn’t a pejorative statement, any time you put 40 points on the Wallabies and top a World Cup pool, you’re happy with your points-scoring ability.

Wales are essentially a South Africa-lite in that they play zero rugby in their own half, kick lots, pressure the ball in the air to win turnovers and penalties in advantageous positions all while backing their defence and waiting for you to make a mistake in your own half. Hence the low number of attacking metres.

Warren-ball at its finest.

As for Argentina, of course coached by former Leinstermen Michael Cheika and Felipe Contepomi, they too line out with a familiar XV. Santiago Carreras continues to have the trust of his coaching staff at 10, with goal-kicking option Emiliano Boffeli on the wing. The only change to the backline from the side that beat Japan to secure a quarter-final place is the presence of Tomas Cubelli at scrumhalf, he replaces Gonzalo Bertranou.

In the pack, there is now Pablo Matera in the backrow. A significant blow for Argentina as he picked up an injury in that Japan game. Instead, Facundo Isa starts at eight while Juan Martin Gonzalez shifts to blindside flanker.

Argentina: Juan Cruz Mallia; Emiliano Boffeli, Lucio Cinti, Santiago Chocobares, Mateo Carreras; Santiago Carreras, Tomas Cubelli; Thomas Gallo, Julian Montoya (capt), Francisco Gomez Kodela; Guido Petti, Tomas Lavanini; Juan Martin Gonzales, Marcos Kremer, Facundo Isa.

Replacements: Agustin Creevy, Joel Sclavi, Eduardo Bello, Matias Alemanno, Rodrigo Bruni, Lautaro Bazan Velez, Nicolas Sanchez, Matias Moroni.

Starting with the teams, Wales have picked a settled group that has worked so well for them so far in this competition, winning their pool with a 100 per cent record as they did.

Dan Biggar is fit to start at outhalf, he leads an experienced backline that also features Gareth Davies, Liam Williams and George North. That backthree, as ever with Wales, looks dynamite with Williams joined by Josh Adams and Louis Rees-Zammit on the flank.

Captain Jac Morgan, however, has arguably been Wales’ best player of the competition so far. He starts once again in the backrow as Aaron Wainwright lines out at number eight in place of the injured Toby Faletau.

Wales: Liam Williams; Louis Rees-Zammit, George North, Nick Tompkins, Josh Adams; Dan Biggar, Gareth Davies; Gareth Thomas, Ryan Elias, Thomas Francis; Will Rowlands, Adam Beard; Jac Morgan, Tommy Reffell, Aaron Wainwright.

Replacements: Dewi Lake, Corey Domachowski, Dillon Lewis, Daffydd Jenkins, Christ Tshiunza, Tomos Williams, Sam Costelow, Rio Dyer.

Good afternoon all and welcome to coverage of the first of the weekend’s Rugby World Cup quarter-finals. Nathan Johns (@nathanrjohns) here to guide you through all the action from Marseille as a rejuvenated Wales take on an Argentina side that scraped into the knockout stages.

Get in touch on Twitter/X with your thoughts ahead of kick-off (4pm) as we start to build-up to the action.