Argentina Australia Mendoza: Pumas Draw With 13 Men
Argentina 28–28 Australia | Estadio Malvinas Argentinas, Mendoza, 5 September 2026
Australia win the two-Test series after a win in Jujuy and a draw in Mendoza. The Wallabies were denied a first-ever sweep of Argentina on Argentine soil.
FULL TIME — 5 September 2026: Argentina Australia Mendoza finished the way this rivalry so often does — level on the scoreboard, and settled by defence rather than attack. Los Pumas drew 28-28 with the Wallabies in a cold, chaotic finish at Estadio Malvinas Argentinas, playing the closing minutes with thirteen men and somehow refusing to lose.
Argentina Australia Mendoza: How the Draw Happened
Felipe Contepomi made four changes to the side beaten in Jujuy, handing debuts to Facundo Cardozo and Mateo Soler off the bench. Australia struck first: a disallowed try for captain Harry Wilson in the 15th minute was only a preview, and Wilson forced his way over four minutes later from a pick-and-go. Ryan Lonergan’s conversion made it 7-0.
Argentina’s discipline nearly buried them early. A string of infringements under pressure earned Franco Molina a yellow card in the 27th minute, and with the extra man Australia struck again, Taniela Tupou sending Max Jorgensen in unopposed to make it 14-0.
Argentina Australia Mendoza then turned. Australia’s Jeremy Williams was carded for a reckless infringement of his own, and with the sides briefly level at fourteen men, Los Pumas won the scrum that put Pablo Matera over for his first try in the 35th minute. Three minutes before half-time, a rehearsed lineout move sent Ignacio Mendy through untouched for a second, and Santiago Carreras converted both to leave the sides locked at 14-14 at the break.
The second half was a genuine shootout. Fraser McReight restored Australia’s lead early on, 21-14, before Ignacio Ruiz crashed over to level it again at 21-21. Then came Argentina’s best spell of the match: a maul, a series of phases off the lineout, and Matera’s second try of the afternoon put Los Pumas ahead for the first time all match, 28-21.
It did not last. With around ten minutes to play, Lucio Cinti was yellow-carded for challenging for the ball from an offside position, and a minute later Australia were awarded a penalty try — an infringement by Santiago Carreras that also earned him a card, leaving Los Pumas defending with thirteen men and the score level at 28-28. What followed was pure resistance: Argentina held their line for the remainder of the match, running down the clock with the extra men against them to force the draw.
What the Result Means
The draw is enough for Australia to win the series: their 27-21 victory in Jujuy on 29 August, combined with this result, means Los Pumas cannot catch them across the two Tests. It denies the Wallabies something rarer, though — a clean sweep of both Tests in Argentina, a feat Australia have never managed on Argentine soil. Les Kiss’s side leave with the series won and their unbeaten run against Argentina extended to five matches, but without the perfect finish they had been chasing.
For Los Pumas, this Argentina Australia Mendoza result will read as two different things depending on the day. They were fifteen minutes from a first win over Australia since last year’s Rugby Championship, and thirteen men from a defeat that would have sealed a series sweep the other way. Holding out to draw with two players in the bin, against a Wallabies side that scored a penalty try in that spell, is defensive character Contepomi will take into the rest of the year.
Player Watch: Who Delivered in Mendoza
Two names stood out across both Tests of this series, not just this Argentina Australia Mendoza one. Joaquín Moro was involved in the buildup to Argentina’s biggest moments — his pass sent Ignacio Mendy through for the try that levelled the first half — and controlled the tempo of Argentina’s best passages from the base of the scrum. Pablo Matera scored both of Argentina’s remaining tries and, across Jujuy and Mendoza, has been the most consistent forward on either side. This was as close to a captain’s two weeks as Los Pumas have had this year.
Lucio Cinti is the harder read. The offside gamble that cost Argentina the extra man with the game in hand was exactly the kind of individual error this Pumas side has been trying to eliminate, and it came at the worst possible moment — with a seven-point lead and ten minutes to defend. It fits a series in which Cinti has not hit the level Los Pumas need from him.
At fly-half, Nicolás Roger started Argentina Australia Mendoza and did not convince. Argentina’s clearest attacking moments in this Argentina Australia Mendoza Test came from forward pressure and set-piece plays rather than anything created from ten, and with the Nations Championship’s second phase against Ireland now on the horizon, it is a position Contepomi will be watching closely.
Los Pumas’ next Test comes on 6 November, away to Ireland at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin — the start of the Nations Championship’s second phase. For more on this series, read our report on the first Test in Jujuy.
