First there were seven. Then there were six. By the end, there were just five.
But it didn't matter, as Argentina advanced to the last four of the men's rugby sevens Olympic tournament.
A spirited performance saw the South Americans somehow defeat South Africa 19-14 to advance to the Olympic semi-finals, having been down a man for the majority of the contest, even reduced to five in the closing stages.
For a time, it appeared that defeat was almost certain, after Gaston Revol received a red card for a high tackle not long after South Africa had taken the lead early in the first half.
But Argentina refused to lie down, a pair of tries for star winger Marcos Moneta before half-time stunning the South Africans and leaving the Pumas with an unlikely semi-final berth within reach.
Santiago Alvarez extended the lead deep into the second period to seemingly wrap up the game, however, a dramatic late penalty try to South Africa saw Argentina reduced to just five men for the dying stages, with Lautaro Bazan Velez sent to the bin.
Argentina managed to collect the ball off the restart however, and booted the ball into touch, erupting into celebration.
They move on to play Fiji in the semi-finals, and after tonight's performance, who would bet against them.
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