Allister Coetzee pleased with his pack after Springboks beat Argentina

Delighted coach Allister Coetzee heaped praise on his pack after they powered the Springboks to a 37-15 win over Argentina in their opening Rugby Championship clash in Port Elizabeth on Saturday.

Coetzee knew it would be a war up front against the physical Argentine side‚ but his forwards rose to the challenge in front of 44 000 fans at Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium.

“We did some good things out there and our scrums were outstanding‚ with Coenie Oosthuizen delivering an exceptional performance.

"Our mauling has improved and once again the bench made a telling difference when called on‚” Coetzee said.

Courtnall Skosan and Raymond Rhule crossed for their first Test tries while Siya Kolisi and Pieter-Steph du Toit also crossed the whitewash.

Elton Jantjies added 17 points with the boot.

South Africa face Argentina again on Saturday in Salta and Coetzee said they need to improve on the Port ELizabeth performance if they want to beat the Pumas in their backyard.

“I am very pleased with the win‚ although it was not a perfect performance‚” Coetzee said.

“But for us to deliver another winning performance‚ we need to improve in a number of areas‚ such as tactical kicking and our lineouts.”

Coetzee was pleased with the patience the Springboks showed on attack.

“The Pumas were a tough team to break down and a lot of credit must go to the leadership of the team‚ who stayed patient‚” the coach said‚

“The message at halftime was to stay patient and keep on doing what we were doing.

"We also needed to play in behind them‚ they were leaving gaps at the back and I think we exploited that.

"We managed to create the space and the players backed themselves when that happened.”

The Springbok defence also deserved a mention‚ Coetzee said: “The Argentineans are very physical‚ but we were spot-on with our defensive tactics.

"They attacked us close to the rucks and we were ready for that‚ with the guys putting in some big tackles and double hits.”