Kiss backs Wallabies to front up against world-number-one Springboks after historic Argentina series win

Australia coach Les Kiss has declared his Wallabies side will be “up for the fight” against world-number-one South Africa later this month, after the tourists claimed a historic series win in Argentina with a 28-28 draw at Estadio Malvinas Argentinas in Mendoza on Saturday.

The result extended Kiss’s unbeaten run as head coach to five Tests and marked the first time Australia have won a series away to Los Pumas. The Wallabies now turn their attention to the Springboks, the two-time defending Rugby World Cup champions.

“We know that we’re playing the number one nation in the world,” Kiss told reporters after the final whistle. “We’re going to have to make sure we get some things better to be able to front up against the Springboks. It will be tough, but I’m pretty sure the boys will be up for the fight.”

Saturday’s draw was a dramatic affair. Harry Wilson and Max Jorgensen crossed for first-half tries to help the Wallabies into a 14-all half-time tie, before Fraser McReight gave Australia the lead six minutes into the second half. Los Pumas fought back and, remarkably, continued to press even after being reduced to 13 men with around 10 minutes remaining — the hosts running the ball out of their own 22 in search of a winning score as the clock expired.

Kiss acknowledged his side left points on the field but was satisfied with the broader gains from the tour. “We probably took control of patches of that game and put ourselves in a good position to win it but as it is over here, it’s tough,” he said. “Mixed feelings in a way, but there is something that we did come here to achieve and we got that.”

The Wallabies’ five-game unbeaten run includes a win against Italy under predecessor Joe Schmidt, plus victories and draws across Tests against Japan and Argentina. Kiss said the squad had been tested in multiple ways during the four-to-five-week trip and that the experience would pay dividends.

“It was important that this whole group knew that we were going to back them. They knew that we were going to challenge them in many different ways, and I think we’ve done that,” he said. “We’ll get a lot of pay from that down the road.”

The Springboks, meanwhile, are currently in North America, holding a 2-1 lead over New Zealand in the Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry Series with one Test remaining in Baltimore. Australia beat South Africa as recently as last year, giving Kiss’s squad a measure of confidence heading into the fixture.