Australia U20 has gone down to Argentina 25-6 in the opening round of the inaugural TRC U20 on the Sunshine Coast.
The Pumitas outscored Nathan Grey's side three tries to none in torrential rainfall.
Catch all the action from TRC U20 LIVE and exclusive on Stan Sport.
Australia rocketed out of the blocks with a Harvey Cordukes charge down helping to pin Argentina in their defensive 22m.
Sustained pressure from the Australians near the Pumitas’ try line yielded four consecutive penalties with Joey Fowler slotting a seventh-minute penalty goal to open the scoring.
Argentina capitalised on an error from the restart, converting their own penalty goal shortly after to square the ledger 3-all after 10 minutes.
Desperate goal line defence and assured kicking from Fowler and fullback Shane Wilcox kept Argentina at bay as the Pumitas looked to wrestle back momentum through their powerful forwards.
Two missed penalty goal attempts from Santino Di Lucca gave the Australians some breathing room before referee Griffin Colby sent number eight Jack Harley to the sin bin for repeated team infringements.
The Pumitas made the most of their advantage, crossing through tighthead prop Tomas Rapetti in the 39th minute with Di Lucca’s conversion putting Argentina 10-3 ahead at half time.
Pumitas number eight Juan Pedro Bernasconi extended his side’s lead with another try shortly after the break, gliding over from a rolling maul to put Argentina ahead 15-3.
Another Di Lucca penalty goal in the 45th minute pushed the margin to 18-3 before a high shot on Ronan Leahy saw Faustino Sanchez Valarolo yellow carded with 30 minutes remaining.
Australia pressed their advantage with Fowler slotting another penalty goal in the 58th minute but the Pumitas refused to break, eventually scoring late to post a 25-6 win.
Speaking to media post-game, Australia prop Jack Barrett said the side would "regroup" ahead of Tuesday's crunch match with South Africa.
"It was a very forward dominated game and they (Argentina) were up for it,” Barrett said.
“It’s still a step in the right direction. We’re not quite where we want to be but it’s a good learning experience. We’ll review this game, look at the things we really need to work on and get back out there.”
Australia's next opponent will be the Junior Springboks, who played out a 13-all draw with New Zealand in the earlier fixture. Australia v South Africa kicks off next Tuesday at 7pm live and exclusive on Stan Sport.
