Nothing but Pumas best will do
Marcelo Bosch knows that Argentina will have to be at their absolute best if they are to record their first victory over the Springboks.
In their four years in the Rugby Championship the Pumas have become steadily more competitive, with the highlights a draw with the Springboks in 2012 and their first-ever victory against Australia last year.
Both of those results came on home soil in Mendoza, but they have also shown some improvement on the road coming within seven points of the Boks at Loftus Versfeld last year after conceding more than 70 points in Soweto the year before.
Experienced centre Bosch said that while their progress has been encouraging, they know that they cannot afford to slip up in any area if they want to push the 'big three'.
"Some weekends we feel that we are closing the gap, and some weekends we feel that we are further away.
"We know that if we don't play 100% in every aspect of the game we will be far from these teams. We know that they are better teams than us but we always have our hopes and we are confident in our game.
"So that gives us hope and sometimes we can play really good games, last year we had out first victory against Australia which was incredible for us.
"Against South Africa we have had some great games in Argentina, in the past three Rugby Championships. Last year as well we played a good game but it wasn't enough to beat them.
"We know that it is not just about playing good rugby, it is about making good decisions in some little moments that are big moments in the game.
"But we feel that when we are 100% and confident in our game we are capable of playing well against them and sometimes why not try to beat them," he said.
Another complication for the Pumas is that with most of their players based in Europe, the Rugby Championship comes around in their off-season, while the other three nations have come off a Super Rugby campaign.
As a result coach Daniel Hourcade has picked three very different teams for their three Rugby Championship matches this year which has made things even tougher on them.
Although they managed to hold on to the ball in their clash with the Wallabies in Mendoza a fortnight ago, they were not able to convert that pressure into points, and Bosch is hopeful that they will be able to rectify that against the Springboks at Kings Park this weekend.
"Against Australia on attack we kept possession in our system, but we did not play as well as we can.
"It was the first two games for some European players as was my case it was the first two games of the season and it is very tough when you start against the two best teams in the world.
"New Zealand and Australia had just finished Super Rugby so they were in the rhythm of the game which hurt us a little bit. We don't have excuses of course, they played much better than us so we are focused on playing better on Saturday," he said.
Bosch will line up against Springbok captain Jean de Villiers, who is making his Test rugby comeback after battling his way back from a serious knee injury.
The Pumas midfielder is looking forward to going up against someone he has plenty of admiration and respect for.
"I am happy that he [De Villiers] is back because I think everybody in the rugby world must be happy that he is back and perhaps he will be very fit and good for the World Cup.
"For me it is always a big challenge to play against him, I admire him a lot. He is a very good player, very experienced captain of South Africa and a gentleman so I am very keen to play against him.
"It is always incredible for me when I face players like him, I try to do my best to play well for my team," he said.
With Bok coach Heyneke Meyer having picked his best available side in what the hosts are viewing as a must-win game the Pumas know that they have their work cut out for them on Saturday, and if they are able to keep the hosts quiet in Durban they will take crucial confidence into the 'friendly' between the sides in Argentina next week which will be the last Test ahead of the World Cup.
By Michael de Vries, in Durban
