Sunday 5 October 2014 11:29, UK
Argentina head coach Daniel Hourcade hailed the hard work of his squad and staff following their first win in the Rugby Championship.
The Pumas made history in Mendoza with their 21-17 victory over the Wallabies – their first in the tournament at the 18th attempt.
Describing his players as "heroes", Hourcade underlined that Argentina's win was not just the end of the tournament, but the start of something with plenty of hard work to come.
I'm full of emotion. We gave a huge effort and this win will give us huge encouragement.
"I'm full of emotion. We gave a huge effort and this win will give us huge encouragement," said Hourcade.
"I have to thank the support which give us leadership and also Agustín Pichot, the staff and the players, who are the real heroes. They were enormous.
"This isn't just the end of the tournament, it's the start of something. We have a lot of areas to improve on and many details to work on, but this showed that we're on the right track and that's important.
"In each game we've made different types of mistakes, some which have cost us the match. Today though we were always playing, unafraid to take risks, and that's important for us.
"There's a staff and plenty of people that have worked hard, a high performance plan, and today we have a lot of players who are playing in Argentina. All this demonstrates something important - this is a triumph for everybody.
"All of us have worked in the same direction and we're convinced that we have more to give.”
Argentina skipper Agustín Creevy also paid tribute to the team's supporters for sticking with them.
"We always believed in the team and what the coaching staff had planned," said Creevy.
"I'm delighted for Daniel (Hourcade), and Agustín (Pichot), along with all the technical staff and most of all the people who have always given us unconditional support and even when we lost still packed the stands.
You have to give credit to the opposition. We didn't have the ball and you can't play without the ball.
"The final minutes were really intense. We paid the price (in the narrow 33-31 defeat) against South Africa, but this time we had full confidence in our tactics."
Creevy singled out one particular moment after the final scrum penalty was won to deafening adulation of the crowd.
"We were nervous, but at the final scrum when we won the penalty I listened to the joy of the crowd. It was incredible."
The Pumas' first win over Australia since 1997 also ended an eight-match losing streak, stretching back almost a year to when they defeated Italy.
"The Pumas played very, very well," conceded Australia coach Ewen McKenzie.
"You have to give credit to the opposition. We didn't have the ball and you can't play without the ball. The scrum was significant and we made too many penalties."
