New Zealand fell to a historic defeat to Argentina on Saturday morning Irish time - and the result will not have a good baring on the All Blacks' world rankings position.
The All Blacks have been in a serious rut of late, losing on home soil to Ireland in a test series last month, before falling to defeat to South Africa in the opening round of the Rugby Championship.
Round three of the Rugby Championship brought yet more calamity for the All Blacks, with Argentina claiming a sensational first ever win over New Zealand in Christchurch.
The result leaves New Zealand in their lowest ever position of fifth in the World Rugby Rankings, as alarm bells continue to ring down under.
New Zealand v Argentina: Pumas claim incredible maiden win over All Blacks
Argentina are top of the Rugby Championship after their maiden win over New Zealand on Saturday in Christchurch. The first win over the All Blacks, on New Zealand soil, is a momentous occasion for Argentinean rugby, and the win was fully deserved.
20 points from the boot of Emiliano Boffelli, as well as a try from Juan Martin Gonzalez, gave Argentina the victory, and left more serious questions to be asked of Ian Foster.
The Rugby Championship | New Zealand v Argentina - Round 3 Highlights
Argentina have consolidated their spot atop The Rugby Championship standings, @lospumas overcoming the @AllBlacks for their first ever win on New Zealand soil.#TRC2022 #TheRugbyChampionship #NZLvARG pic.twitter.com/9tfDV4lq6u— TheRugbyChampionship (@SanzarTRC) August 27, 2022
The result has serious implications for New Zealand rugby. Prior to their 2019 World Cup semi-final defeat to England, the All Blacks had never fallen out of the top three in the World Rankings.
The loss at home to Argentina will see them fall to fifth place when the latest rankings are published on Monday morning. It will be the second time the All Blacks have fallen so low, having briefly slipped to fifth after the series defeat to Ireland and loss to South Africa.
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England will move up into fourth place, while Argentina will leapfrog Scotland and Wales and move into seventh. Ireland remain in first place, ahead of France, South Africa, and England.
New Zealand's spiral does not appear to be slowing, and the loss to Argentina is only going to lead to more questions being asked of head coach Ian Foster. There is no sign of a recovery on the horizon, and New Zealand have now lost six of their last eight test matches - a shocking run from a team whose previous six losses came over the space of four years, and who won two World Cups in the 2010s.
Argentina and New Zealand face off again in Hamilton next Saturday, in a game that now looks even more important for the All Blacks.
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