"Failed auditions" – Five Springboks who flopped against Argentina

The world champions were pushed all the way by an understrength Los Pumas side at Estadio José Amalfitani, with the scores locked at 10-10 at half-time before Cameron Hanekom's second-half try eventually proved decisive.

It was far from convincing, however. South Africa's kicking game repeatedly misfired, their attack struggled for fluency and Argentina were still hammering away at the Bok line after the final hooter before Matías Moroni spilled their final opportunity.

There was also a major injury concern, with captain Siya Kolisi forced off after just 25 minutes with another hamstring problem. The Test had been viewed as an important opportunity for several returning Springboks to get minutes ahead of the four-Test Greatest Rivalry series against the All Blacks.

For some, it felt like a failed audition.

Here are five Springboks who struggled against Argentina.

A difficult afternoon for the returning fly-half despite contributing five points from the tee.

Argentina deliberately sent plenty of traffic down Feinberg-Mngomezulu's channel and, while there were some encouraging early carries, South Africa's attack lacked cohesion.

His kicking from hand became a particular problem. The Boks repeatedly kicked too long to offer their chasers a realistic contest, with Feinberg-Mngomezulu, Cobus Reinach and Aphelele Fassi all guilty during an ineffective first-half kicking display.

The frustration was summed up when, following a lengthy spell of possession, the 24-year-old dropped into the pocket and attempted a drop goal – only to see the ball crash against the crossbar.

There were flashes of the player who has become such an important figure for Erasmus, but plenty of rust too.

Fassi deserves credit for his involvement in South Africa's opening try, joining the attack before Edwill van der Merwe raced away to score just before half-time.

Beyond that, however, it was a frustrating performance.

Handling errors disrupted his afternoon and he endured some uncomfortable moments defensively, while his kicking also contributed to South Africa's problems in the first half.

There were occasional flashes of his attacking quality, particularly when entering the line at pace, but not enough of them.

A hit-and-miss showing from the experienced scrum-half.

Reinach did occasionally cause problems around the fringes, but South Africa's attack frequently became disjointed and their kicking strategy failed to put Argentina under sustained pressure.

The Bok half-backs were particularly wasteful during the opening period, with Reinach among those sending kicks too long for South Africa to properly compete in the air.

With the All Blacks looming, this wasn't Reinach's strongest argument for retaining the No.9 jersey.

This was an important opportunity for De Jager to get valuable minutes following his latest injury lay-off, but the veteran lock endured a rusty return.

One costly knock-on helped spark the sequence which eventually resulted in Argentina's opening try, while he also conceded a penalty and South Africa's usually dependable lineout wasn't completely convincing.

De Jager was replaced during the third quarter as Erasmus unleashed his bench, with the Springboks becoming increasingly dominant up front thereafter.

After his recent fitness problems, getting through more than 50 minutes was valuable. Performance-wise, though, the coaches will expect considerably more.

Not a disastrous performance by any means, but certainly a mixed one from South Africa's record cap holder on his return.

Etzebeth produced some typically dominant defensive moments, secured his lineout ball and managed to charge down a box kick.

There were errors too. He knocked on from a pick-and-go with South Africa pressing close to the Argentine line, while another second-half carry ended with the giant lock becoming isolated and turned over.

Like De Jager, Etzebeth was returning after missing the Nations Championship through injury, although unlike his second-row partner he completed the full 80 minutes.

With four enormous Tests against New Zealand coming next, Erasmus will hope the outing has knocked away some of the rust.