DURBAN, South Africa (AP) — South Africa scored nine tries and powered to a 67-30 bonus-point win over Argentina on Saturday to move into first place in the Rugby Championship heading into next week's final round.
Flyhalf Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu grabbed a hat trick of tries as the Springboks dismantled the Pumas in the second half, having only been leading 25-23 at halftime in Durban.
Malcolm Marx, Cheslin Kolbe, Morne van den Berg, Pieter-Steph du Toit — with two tries — and Manie Libbok also went over for the Boks, with Feinberg-Mngomezulu kicking eight conversions and two penalties for a 37-point personal haul — the most by a South Africa player in a test.
“No one can disagree that Sacha was man of the match and did incredible things on the field,” Boks coach Rassie Erasmus said.
Argentina had a penalty try and a try from Santiago Chocobares in the first half, before Tomas Albornoz went over for another in the 53rd that was converted by Santiago Carreras. The Pumas didn't score another point.
Carreras finished with 15 points from two conversions and three penalties.
South Africa climbed atop the standings, one point above New Zealand and four clear of third-place Australia. Argentina is in last place on nine points, six adrift of the Boks.
South Africa and Argentina meet again next Saturday at Twickenham in the final round.
Erasmus might have to deal with some injuries, with Cheslin Kolbe (shoulder), Damian Willemse (hamstring) and Ethan Hooker (ankle) all coming off in the second half to leave the team with an entirely reshuffled backline.
“We’ve won nothing yet in this Rugby Championship — we’ve had one win and one loss against New Zealand and Australia, and we know how tough Argentina are,” Erasmus said. “We’re flying tomorrow and we’re playing at Twickenham next week and we have to win that game or it’s just another missed Rugby Championship.”
AP rugby: https://apnews.com/hub/rugby
Argentina's Juan Cruz Mallía, right, jumps for the ball during a rugby championship test match between South Africa and Argentina, in Durban, South Africa, Saturday, Sept. 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe)
South Africa's Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, right, breaks away from Argentina's captain Julián Montoya, right, to score a try during a rugby championship test match between South Africa and Argentina, in Durban, South Africa, Saturday, Sept. 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe)
South Africa's Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu scores a try during a rugby championship test match between South Africa and Argentina, in Durban, South Africa, Saturday, Sept. 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe)
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuela’s acting President Delcy Rodríguez on Thursday asked lawmakers to approve reforms to the oil industry that would open the doors to greater foreign investment during her first state of the union speech less than two weeks after its longtime leader was toppled by the United States.
Rodríguez, who has been under pressure by the Trump administration to fall in line with its vision for the oil-rich nation, said sales of Venezuelan oil would go to bolster crisis-stricken health services, economic development and other infrastructure projects.
She outlined a distinct vision for the future, straying from her predecessors, who have long railed against American intervention in Venezeula. “Let us not be afraid of diplomacy” with the U.S., said Rodriguez, the former vice president who must now navigate competing pressures from the Trump administration and a government loyal to former President Nicolás Maduro.
The speech, which was broadcast on a delay in Venezuela, came one day after Rodríguez said her government would continue releasing prisoners detained under Maduro in what she described as “a new political moment” since his ouster.
On Thursday, Trump met at the White House with Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado, whose political party is widely considered to have won 2024 elections rejected by Maduro. But in endorsing Rodríguez, who served as Maduro’s vice president since 2018, Trump has sidelined Machado.
Rodríguez, who had a call with Trump earlier this week, said Wednesday evening on state television that her government would use “every dollar” earned from oil sales to overhaul the nation’s public health care system. Hospitals and other health care facilities across the country have long been crumbling, and patients are asked to provide practically all supplies needed for their care, from syringes to surgical screws.
The acting president must walk a tightrope, balancing pressures from both Washington and top Venezuelan officials who hold sway over Venezuela's security forces and strongly oppose the U.S. Her recent public speeches reflect those tensions — vacillating from conciliatory calls for cooperation with the U.S., to defiant rants echoing the anti-imperialist rhetoric of her toppled predecessor.
American authorities have long railed against a government they describe as a “dictatorship,” while Venezuela’s government has built a powerful populist ethos sharply opposed to U.S. meddling in its affairs.
For the foreseeable future, Rodríguez's government has been effectively relieved of having to hold elections. That's because when Venezuela’s high court granted Rodríguez presidential powers on an acting basis, it cited a provision of the constitution that allows the vice president to take over for a renewable period of 90 days.
Trump enlisted Rodríguez to help secure U.S. control over Venezuela’s oil sales despite sanctioning her for human rights violations during his first term. To ensure she does his bidding, Trump threatened Rodríguez earlier this month with a “situation probably worse than Maduro.”
Maduro, who is being held in a Brooklyn jail, has pleaded not guilty to drug-trafficking charges.
Before Rodríguez’s speech on Thursday, a group of government supporters was allowed into the presidential palace, where they chanted for Maduro, who the government insists remains the country’s president. “Maduro, resist, the people are rising,” they shouted.
Follow AP’s coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america
Venezuela's acting President Delcy Rodriguez makes a statement to the press at Miraflores presidential palace in Caracas, Venezuela, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
Venezuela's acting President Delcy Rodriguez, center, smiles flanked by Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello, right, and National Assembly President Jorge Rodriguez after making a statement to the press at Miraflores presidential palace in Caracas, Venezuela, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
