New Zealand produced a masterclass to reach their third Rugby World Cup final in the last four tournaments with a commanding 44-6 win over Argentina.
The All Blacks are synonymous with success in the biggest event in rugby and they will have contested half the finals in the tournament's history when they run out against either England or reigning champions South Africa in Paris next Saturday night.
New Zealand’s record appearance holder Sam Whitelock was colossal while Will Jordan stands on the brink of making World Cup history next weekend after a stunning hat-trick as the Pumas were swept aside.
Argentina entered the Stade de France as extreme underdogs with just two wins over the All Blacks in their 36 encounters. Influential flanker Pablo Matera, pivotal in those triumphs, was ruled out with a hamstring injury but Argentina made a bright start.
Their line-out has functioned smoothly and they capitalised on clean ball to win a penalty within five minutes as Emiliano Boffelli kicked the Pumas ahead.
Boffelli’s penalty, however, sparked the All Blacks into life and it was fitting that Whitelock was instrumental.
The legendary lock featured against Argentina in the World Cup 12 years ago and he remains on track to become the only player to win the tournament on three occasions.
Whitelock displayed his class with silky hand skills to combine with his backline and a long pass released Jordan to join Damian Penaud on six tries for the tournament.
New Zealand quickly began to motor through the gears and their second try through Jordie Barrett arrived on 17 minutes. Mark Telia secured the turnover and the All Blacks raced upfield with Whitelock demonstrating quick hands again to link with the backs and Barrett finished expertly.
New Zealand’s defence was exceptional in the first half as they restricted Argentina’s famed physicality to dominate at the breakdown.
The All Blacks constantly recycled the ball quickly and there was remarkably no scrum until the half-hour mark of a relentless first half. Facundo Isa’s return after a head knock coincided with some Argentinian pressure as they bombarded the All Black line but they were unable to find a way over and they reduced the deficit to 12-6 with a penalty after opting against a scrum.
Richie Mo'unga reestablished a nine-point lead for the All Blacks before they effectively killed the semi-final as a contest with their third try on the stroke of half-time.
The excellent Telea was the protagonist as he powered through several defenders and New Zealand exposed Argentina’s defence as Aaron Smith delivered quick ball for Shannon Frizell to walk over the line.
Any feint hope of Argentina reversing their 14-point deficit at the interval quickly disappeared as New Zealand added their fourth try just two minutes into the second half.
Argentina messed up the restart, allowing New Zealand to dominate another scrum and Smith turned from provider to scorer to secure their place in the final.
The Pumas couldn’t live with the intensity of New Zealand as they blitzed through their defence and Frizell added his second try on 49 minutes.
Mo'unga has grown into the famous All Black number 10 jersey during this tournament and he instigated their fifth try with an initial break before the pull was presented to Tongan flanker Frizzell to power over.
Argentina’s scrum was faltering badly and they looked despondent as New Zealand used their dominance to rest key players in Beauden Barrett and Smith.
The biggest winning margin in a World Cup semi-final was the All Blacks beat Wales 49-6 in 1987 and they threatened to eclipse that when Jordan added his second to become outright top scorer in the tournament.
MTelea responded perfectly to being dropped against Ireland for breaking protocol with a stunning display and he created the space for Jordan to score.
One of the biggest differences between the sides was their discipline as New Zealand put on a clinic on how to avoid being penalised at the breakdown until Scott Barrett was sinbinned.
Argentina, however, had already checked out and they failed to capitalise on their man advantage and it was left to Jordan to complete a historic hat-trick with his 8th try of the tournament.
It was a scintillating individual effort as he chipped over an Argentinian defender to collect as he equalled the record for most tries in a single World Cup held by Bryan Habana, Jonah Lomu and Julian Savea.
New Zealand were relentless as they chased the biggest semi-final winning margin and they went close to eclipsing their record late on but Mo'unga wasted a brilliant opportunity deep in the Argentinian half.
Both sides reached the semi-finals despite finishing runners-up in their group after losing their opening games but New Zealand have gained momentum and they outclassed Argentina - an ominous sign for their opponents next weekend.
