ARC Preview – Uruguay

It’s almost here, the groundbreaking new test rugby tournament begins this Saturday. The bringing together of Rugby World Cup regulars Argentina, Canada, and the USA along with the rapidly developing Uruguay, Brazil, and Chile gives the Americas a legitimate and highly promising platform for rugby to grow throughout the region.

2015 FORM

Los Teros had an incredibly busy year with 17 matches in all with 14 different opponents of widely varying strength. They started with dominant wins over Paraguay and Brazil in the South American ‘A’ competition, but then fell to a USA XV in Montevideo followed by an embarrasing defeat to Chile in Santiago, the latter particularly deflating since it was a reasonably strong Uruguayan lineup.

The losing streak continued for another five games, including a two-game series against the Fiji Warriors and a mediocre three game set at the Tbilisi Cup in Georgia. Somehow they pulled out of the slump with their first ever victory over an Argentina XV in an inspired performance at the Estadio Charrúa, against a team featuring several players who will be on display in the ARC.

That would be their last win of the season, however, as they slumped to a pair of crushing defeats against Japan before being swept away in the World Cup. Despite the heavy scorelines, however, Los Teros showed some moments of class and their performances did show marked improvement since their last trip to the flagship event.

POST-RWC 2015

It’s been a very eventful three months since the conclusion of the World Cup for Uruguayan rugby. On the field the ‘A’ side stumbled in the third division of the Argentine provincial competition, losing to Sur and failing to gain promotion. Off the field, however, has been a different story.

Head coach Pablo Lemoine was promoted to High Performance Director, the centre of excellence at the Estadio Charrúa was ratified, and a new strategic alliance with the Argentine Rugby Union (UAR) came to fruition. The new initiative has seen Esteban Meneses installed as head coach, some players becoming centrally contracted, and a revamped training schedule that has seen them sharing the pitch with Los Jaguares in recent days.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Los Teros will be without their star halfbacks Agustin Ormaechea and Felipe Berchesi, so it will be up to some different names to lead the way in the Americas Rugby Championship.

The forwards have long been the strength of Uruguayan rugby, and this team should not prove any different, though they do appear slightly more mobile than the past. One player who caught the eye both for his appearance and reckless playing style is beanpole flanker Matías Beer. Despite standing 1.94m (6’4″) he is one of the lightest forwards in the competition, but has endless energy and good skills.

Of similar height but of a sturdier build is athletic youngster Gonzalo Soto, a highly rated lock or loose forward from last year’s u20 program. Exuberant scrumhalf Santiago Arata is still eligible for this year’s u20 team, and is noted for his lightning acceleration and quick thinking. He is unlikely to start ahead of similarly talented Guillermo Lijtenstein, but should make his mark as an impact substitute.

Utility back Rodrigo Silva has been in the squad for four years already but has never quite found a home, having been shifted around the backline and even a couple games at scrumhalf. He prefers the flyhalf position, however, and his attacking skills appear to have put him in the frame to start ahead of the younger but more traditional Manuel Blengio.

VERDICT

While resent results might not mark them as a particularly serious threat, Los Teros should not be underestimated. Their new high performance environment is by all accounts a significant improvement on their purely amateur past and consistent training over several weeks should mark them as one of the most cohesive units in the competition. Argentina will likely prove too much for them to deal with and fourth place appears most likely, but if Uruguay can turn over Canada in the opener they could be sleepers to take the second spot come March.

FIXTURES

Feb 6	vs Canada	Langford	21:00 UYT, 16:00 PST
Feb 12	vs Brazil	São Paulo	19:00 UYT, 20:00 Brasilia
Feb 20	vs Argentina	Maldonado	20:30 UYT/Argentina
Feb 26	vs Chile	Santiago	18:00 UYT/Chile
Mar 5	vs USA	Montevideo	18:00 UYT, 16:00 EST

SQUAD

NAME	POS	HGT	WGT	DOB	CAPS	CLUB
de Mula, Rodolfo	PR	1.85 6-1	112 245	Mar 18 1985	24	P.S.G.
Echeverría, Juan	PR	1.75 5-9	114 250	Oct 9 1991	10	Old Christians
Gattas, Facundo	PR/HO	1.88 6-2	108 240	Jul 2 1995	0	Lobos
Mones, Rafaél	PR	1.85 6-1	105 230	Jan 12 1994	0	Seminaro
Sagario, Mario	PR	1.86 6-1	116 255	Jun 29 1986	51	Munster (IR)
Sanguinetti, Mateo	PR	1.86 6-1	105 230	Jul 26 1992	18	Los Cuervos
Secco, Ignacio	PR	? ?	? ?		0	Trébol Paysandú
Arboleya, Carlos	HO/PR	1.73 5-8	110 240	Jul 23 1985	54	Trébol Paysandú
Kessler, Germán	HO	1.83 6-0	105 230	Jul 1 1994	13	Los Cuervos
Dotti, Ignacio	LO	1.95 6-5	100 220	Aug 18 1994	4	Los Cuervos
Lamanna, Franco	LO	1.90 6-3	105 230	Oct 1 1991	25	Carrasco Polo
Magno, Diego	LO	1.90 6-3	106 235	Apr 27 1989	51	M.V.C.C.
Palomeque, Mathias	LO	1.95 6-5	107 235	Jul 10 1986	26	Trébol Paysandú
Bascou, Fernando	FL	1.90 6-3	96 210	Apr 5 1987	26	P.S.G.
Beer, Matías	FL	1.94 6-4	92 200	Dec 16 1993	15	Old Christians
Gaminara, Juan Manuel	FL	1.71 5-7	95 210	May 1 1989	27	Old Boys
Lacoste, Lucas	FL	1.87 6-2	93 205	Jun 1 1991	0	Trébol Paysandú
Ormaechea, Juan Diego	FL/N8	1.84 6-0	100 220	Jan 28 1989	12	Carrasco Polo
Soto, Gonzalo	FL/LO	1.92 6-4	101 220	Feb 10 1995	0	Carrasco Polo
Nieto, Alejandro	N8	1.86 6-1	108 240	Jan 7 1988	31	Champagnat
Arata, Santiago	SH	1.73 5-8	72 160	1996	0	P.S.G.
Lijtenstein, Guillermo	SH	1.69 5-6	72 160	Sep 14 1990	15	Trébol Paysandú
Ormaechea, Agustín	SH	1.76 5-9	83 180	Mar 8 1991	27	Mont-de-Marsan (FR)
Blengio, Manuel	FH	1.84 6-0	78 170	Apr 28 1994	11	Old Christians
Secco, Martín	FH	1.78 5-10	78 170		0	Los Cuervos
Silva, Rodrigo	FH/FB	1.82 6-0	86 190	Nov 2 1992	18	Carrasco Polo
Deal, Pedro	CE	1.79 5-10	95 210	Oct 13 1994	3	Old Boys
Klappenbach, Facundo	CE	1.78 5-10	90 200	Jun 9 1995	0	Champagnat
Román, Alberto	CE	1.78 5-10	95 210	Jun 1 1987	37	P.S.G.
Vilaseca, Andrés	CE	1.85 6-1	93 205	May 8 1991	16	Old Boys
Favaro, Federico	WI	1.74 5-9	80 175	May 19 1991	9	Old Christians
Leivas, Leandro	WI	1.81 5-11	98 215	Jul 6 1988	44	Old Christians
Mieres, Gastón	WI/FB	1.80 5-11	80 175	Oct 5 1989	41	Coventry
Rocco, Andrés	WI	1.76 5-9	78 170	Jun 29 1994	0	Old Boys
Martínez, Santiago	FB	1.86 6-1	87 190	Jun 15 1993	1	Carrasco Polo