Andrew Kellaway scored his fourth try of the Rugby Championship as in-form Australia beat Argentina 27-8 to go second in the table on Saturday.
The Wallabies have a runners-up spot behind champions New Zealand in their sights with one match against the Pumas to play after scoring three tries in their first ever Test in Townsville, moving above South Africa after they were beaten by the All Blacks.
Emiliano Boffelli dragged a penalty wide before Reece Hodge burst through a tackle after throwing a dummy and applied the finish following a swift side-step.
Hodge's early opening try came after a powerful run from the outstanding Samu Kerevi, who crashed over for a score of his own and Quade Cooper made it three successful kicks out of three to put the vibrant Wallabies 17-3 up at half-time following a penalty from Boffelli.
Julian Montoya touched down early in the second half at the back of a driving maul, but Boffelli missed the conversion and was also off target with another penalty.
James O'Connor sent a kick sailing through the posts after coming on for his first Test of the year while Marcos Kremer was in the sin-bin.
Replacement fly-half O'Connor set up Kellaway, the leading try-scorer in the tournament, for a simple finish nine minutes from time in another impressive showing from Dave Rennie's men.
Wallabies hitting their stride under Rennie
Australia, up to third in the rankings, were clearly brimming with confidence after beating world champions South Africa twice and they have won three consecutive Tests for the first time since November 2017 with head Dave Rennie making his mark.
The Pumas, on the other hand, have lost five in a row and have not scored more than 13 points in a game during that dismal run. The last time they went longer without scoring more than 15 points in a Test was a five-game stretch from March to August in 1990.
Kerevi causes havoc
The pace and power of centre Kerevi caused Argentina all sorts of problems.
Kerevi gained 90 metres with his 14 carries and beat six defenders in an all-action display.
Paris Olympics: Home hero Dupont sends France into rugby sevens semi-finals
Antoine Dupont sealed hosts France's progression to the rugby sevens semi-finals as his late try clinched victory over Argentina at the Paris Olympics.
Dupont, voted the 2021 World Player of the Year, missed out on this year's Six Nations to prepare himself for the sevens at the Games.
And he scored a brilliant solo try in the dying seconds at a jam-packed Stade de France to wrap up a 26-14 triumph over Argentina on Thursday.
Aaron Grandidier had earlier crossed the line twice along with back-rower Andy Timo's opener in a dominant first half, though Argentina fought back after the break.
Rodrigo Isgro responded for Los Pumas before Marcos Moneta sneaked over after France were reduced to six when Jordan Sepho was sin-binned.
Yet home favourite Dupont stepped up in the decisive moment, whipping the crowd into frenzy after setting up a last-four meeting against South Africa, who overcame New Zealand in the quarter-finals.
South Africa finished third in Pool A as New Zealand topped the group, but the Springboks exacted revenge against the All Blacks to secure a semi-final berth.
The Springboks raced into a two-try lead before holding out for a 14-7 victory to stun one of the pre-tournament favourites.
Fiji, champions in 2016 when the event was first introduced and four years later in Tokyo, unexpectedly found themselves up against it as Chay Mullins bundled over twice to snatch a 10-7 lead for Ireland at half-time.
Zac Ward extended the Irish lead but two tries in less than 30 seconds from Selestino Ravutaumada and Terio Tamani snatched a 19-15 turnaround.
The two-time Olympic champions will meet Australia after the Wallabies downed the United States with ease.
Corey Toole and James Turner both crossed in the first half en route to a convincing 18-0 triumph in the final match of the day, sending Australia into their first rugby sevens semi-final at the Olympics.
Sesko opts for Leipzig stay over Arsenal, Man Utd move due to progress opportunities
Benjamin Sesko remains certain that staying at RB Leipzig is the "right decision" to develop his career after turning down reported Premier League interest.
Slovenia international Sesko joined Leipzig from RB Salzburg in 2023, scoring 14 league goals last campaign, a tally bettered by only seven players in the German top flight.
That form was said to have attracted Arsenal, Manchester United and Chelsea to the 21-year-old, who instead signed a new five-year contract with the Bundesliga club last month.
Having committed his future to life at the Red Bull Arena, the striker believes Leipzig will provide a platform for his progression.
"I thought it through very well," Sesko said to Nogomania, a Slovenian media outlet. "I believe I made the right decision. I wanted to gain more experience, learn more, and not rush things.
"Leipzig are an excellent club that can provide what I need for the next step. Leipzig's vision is clear; everything is geared towards growth, progress, and high goals. I felt it was right to decide this way."
Sesko's new deal could see him stay with Leipzig until 2029, with Marco Rose boasting one of the world's most exciting prospects up top.
The Leipzig attacker scored from 14 of his 47 shots last season in the league, a conversion rate of 29.8% – the third-best ratio in the 2023-24 Bundesliga among players to have managed at least five goals.
That deadly finishing in front of goal will have Rose excited once more, and Sesko says his boss was key to the decision to stay.
"We talked," Sesko explained. "He told me he wanted me to stay but also said I should decide based on my feelings.
"He said if I felt I needed to move on, I should go, but if not, I should stay. He's an excellent coach who has led many great players.
"I'm glad I decided this way. I did it before the Euro to keep a clear head and focus entirely on the championship."
'A scandal' - Mascherano fumes following Argentina's controversial defeat at Paris Olympics
Javier Mascherano labelled Argentina's controversial defeat to Morocco as "a scandal" in their opening game at the Paris Olympics.
Argentina looked to have rescued a point having come from two goals down when Cristian Medina headed home in the 16th minute of second half injury-time.
However, crowd trouble in the Stade Geoffroy-Guichard halted proceedings, with referee Glenn Nyberg taking both sets of players off the pitch.
The game was subsequently suspended for nearly two hours and once it resumed, the controversy and confusion continued.
Following a VAR review, Bruno Amione was adjudged to have been in an offside position in the build-up to the potential equaliser as Morocco's advantage was reinstated.
The remaining three minutes of the contest played out in front of an empty stadium, with Tarik Sektioui's side able to hold on for an unlikely triumph.
The game finished more than four hours after it started, leaving Mascherano furious at full-time, describing the outcome as not befitting an event as prestigious as the Olympics.
“The match was suspended for security and safety,” Mascherano began. “At no moment did we talk about the review. The official Olympic page put the match at 2-2.
“The match was suspended for security. At no moment did we talk about the review. Then after we were not told anything new, we started to hear things.
“The referee never came, he never gave us an explanation.”
He added: “We turn the page and stay with the positive things from the team in the second half and look for the two wins we’re going to need.
“What happened on the pitch was a scandal. This isn’t a neighbourhood tournament, this is the Olympic Games.
“How are they going to stop the match seven times in the second half because someone comes onto the pitch?
“The second and third time you have to take a decision. Seven times people came onto the pitch.”
Lionel Messi, who won gold for La Albiceleste in Beijing in 2008, also shared his frustrations with his former Barcelona team-mate.
The 37-year-old kept it to the point, posting “Insolito” on his Instagram story, which translates to “unbelievable".
Argentina face Iraq in their next game in Lyon on Saturday, concluding their group campaign against Ukraine on July 30.
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