A brave Pumas team won a titanic arm wrestle to beat the All Blacks 38-30.
Pummelled in last-quarter scrums and lineouts and conceding too many mistakes, the All Blacks extended their losing streak in Wellington to seven Tests and gave up their third loss to Argentina, going down 30-38 in the first Lipovitan D Rugby Championship Test.
Argentina rose to the occasion on the back of outstanding defence in the face of a first-half nightmare of penalties conceded in a game which yielded no scrums until the 60th minute.
It was a harsh lesson for the new All Blacks regime after their three unbeaten games to start the season.
As close as the game was, Argentina won the match through a bad All Blacks mistake in the 66th minute.
Flanker Ethan Blackadder made a lineout steal, but replacement hooker Asafo Aumua, playing halfback, threw a pass that went to no one. When first five-eighths Damian McKenzie tidied, he compounded the issue by also missing his mark, leaving replacement centre Rieko Ioane scrambling to secure the ball in the in-goal area.
From the resulting five-metre scrum, the Argentine pack went to work, and it was replacement hooking veteran Agustin Creevy who went under the bar to score and see his side to a 35-30 lead with 14 minutes left.
Ironically, McKenzie had been denied a try moments earlier after play was called back for his forward pass to replacement wing Will Jordan.
Further irony resulted from consecutive scrum penalties being awarded to Argentina. They started to come moments after New Zealand replaced props Ethan de Groot and Tyrell Lomax after 60 minutes without having packed a scrum.
That was down to the lack of dropped passes in the perfect conditions. With both sides looking to run the ball, penalties were conceded, most of them 10 by Argentina to four by the All Blacks, which impacted the game.
Argentina started with an attacking purpose: livewire fullback Juan Crua Mallia found holes in the All Blacks' defence screen to give his side momentum. However, the All Blacks were equally up to the mark, and they forced the errors that allowed them to clear the line.
If the scrums were not a factor, the lineout was, and it was early in the game when the All Blacks punctured Argentina's run of lineout success by stealing a ball and building on the skills of locks Sam Darry, Tupou Vaa'i, and Blackadder in the line.
An 80m breakout by the All Blacks from a turnover resulted in the first try of the game in the 15th minute. Argentina lost the ball, and halfback TJ Perenara, who had been having his clearing kicks challenged with effect, passed to McKenzie this time.
He chipped ahead to just outside the 22m area, got the bounce and fed fullback Beauden Barrett. He then kicked ahead, and in the chase to the goalmouth, wing Mark Tele'a and hooker Codie Taylor both couldn't secure the ball. But Darry, on his starting debut, took it and rolled over the line for a stunning try.
Having gained a clearance on their line after flanker Dalton Papali'i turned the ball over at the breakdown; the All Blacks faltered when failing to take advantage as Argentina secured the ball.
Flanker Pablo Matera, an inspiration throughout the game, got the ball at a standoff position and drifted across the field untouched before slipping the ball to second five-eighths Santiago Chocobares. He then put his centre Lucio Cinti into space, and he outsped the defence to open Argentina's scoring.
Another penalty conceded by Argentina allowed the All Blacks to mount a 34th-minute assault in the 22m area. After seven forward phases, the ball was given to the backs, and McKenzie found centre Anton Lienert-Brown with a miss-out pass, and he scored.
But Argentina's response was immediate when the All Blacks put a contestable kick up on the right wing. In tapping the ball back, it went unsupported and bounced for wing Mateo Carreras, who picked it up and raced in for a try.
They backed that up by starting the second half effectively, Matera winning a turnover and Carreras kicking to the corner. Lock Franco Molina took a flat throw and pushed his way over the line, and Carreras' conversion gave them a 22-20 lead.
But it was only momentary as a penalty was conceded for McKenzie to convert 42m out to reclaim the lead. But in the 49th-minute Blackadder was penalised for a high tackle and Carreras landed the goal to reclaim the lead.
However, two minutes later, an 11-phase play with Leinert-Brown getting the initial impetus, but then Savea, Blackadder and Vaa'i all contributed to move the ball towards the line where a short pass from Perenara found Tele'a, who sliced through for the try.
When the pressure went on, Argentina excelled, playing outstanding pressure rugby that left the All Blacks pondering an unusual level of mistakes.
New Zealand 30 (Darry, Lienert-Brown, Telea tries; McKenzie 3 cons, 3 pens) Argentina 38 (Cinti, M Carreras, Molina, Creevy tries; S Carreras 3 cons, 4 pens)
New Zealand: 1. Ethan De Groot, 2. Codie Taylor, 3. Tyrel Lomax, 4. Tupou Vaa’i, 5. Sam Darry, 6. Ethan Blackadder, 7. Dalton Papali’i, 8. Ardie Savea (Captain), 9. TJ Perenara, 10. Damian McKenzie, 11. Mark Tele’a, 12. Jordie Barrett, 13. Anton Lienert-Brown, 14. Sevu Reece , 15. Beauden Barrett
Replacements: 16. Asafo Aumua, 17. Ofa Tu’ungafasi, 18. Fletcher Newell, 19. Josh Lord, 20. Wallace Sititi, 21. Cortez Ratima, 22. Rieko Ioane, 23. Will Jordan
Argentina: 1. Gallo, Thomas, 2. Ruiz, Ignacio, 3. Bello, Eduardo, 4. Molina, Franco, 5. Rubiola, Pedro, 6. Matera, Pablo Captain, 7. Kremer, Marcos, 8. Gonzalez, Juan Martin, 9. Bertranou, Gonzalo, 10. Carreras, Santiago, 11. Carreras, Mateo, 12. Chocobares, Santiago, 13. Cinti, Lucio, 14. Moroni, Matias, 15. Mallia, Juan Cruz
Replacements:16. Creevy, Agustin, 17. Vivas, Mayco, 18. Sclavi, Joel, 19. Lavanini, Tomás, 20. Elias, Ephraim, 21. Oviedo, Joaquín, 22. Bazan Velez, Lautaro, 23. Albornoz, Tomas
Referee: Angus Gardner
ARs: Nic Berry, Andrea Piardi
TMO: Brett Cronan
