Up and Under

Up and Under is a weekly feature on Americas Rugby News which reviews the best and worst from games involving the Americas teams over the previous week.

UP

Argentina
A comprehensive performance in Tokyo saw Los Pumas open their November tour with a bang. The 54-20 win over Japan sees Argentina back into the world’s top 8. Now ranked 6th this is highly encouraging ahead of the Rugby World Cup 2019 draw. Ranked 9th or lower would guarantee a ‘Pool of Death’ scenario for Argentina. Based on Saturday’s win Los Pumas are well positioned for further victories this month. Their next assignment is against Wales on Saturday in Cardiff.

Brazil Women’s 7s
Brazil’s Women’s Rugby 7s side won yet again. Their unbeaten tournament run in Montevideo handed them the Valentín Martínez title. Brazil enjoyed victories over Entre Rios, Chile, and Argentina ‘2’ on the opening day. The title was then secured on day two with wins against Peru and Argentina ‘1’. The competition was pre-season activity for the Brazilians.

Nicolás Sánchez
Two tries and eight goals from Sánchez saw him scoring a personal best of 29 points in a Pumas shirt. His general play was also impressive against Japan, while his decision making and tactical play were both high points of Argentina’s match. He is set to have assistance against Wales from Juan Martín Hernández who returns to fitness in time for Saturday. Their tandem combination has been at the heart of the Pumas’ success in recent years.

Pumas Home Matches in 2017
Argentina will host three home test matches in June. The lineup sees England playing for the first time in San Juan and Santa Fé. Both venues are quality facilities which hosted matches in the 2011 Copa América. The selection saw Jujuy missing out. The northern city had been well positioned to host one of the matches but is now likely to host Georgia instead. Other cities will host Argentina’s Rugby Championship matches while the Argentina XV will also play elsewhere. It is a truly nationwide spread of venues.

Chicago Loves Rugby
While those not at Soldier Field were stymied (we’ll get to that later), a record rugby attendance of 62,300 watched one of the great matches of the professional era on Saturday as Ireland upset the All Blacks. The match on Friday at Toyota Park was also a sell-out proving once again that there is an appetite for high level rugby in America, and that Chicago is more than capable of hosting big games when called upon. Administrators dropped the ball in the broadcast booth, but they got the match day experience right.

Clayton RFC
ARN’s own Ted Hardy is in the news for the right reasons. His local rugby club, Clayton Rugby Football Club, are to have their own new facility. The Town of Wilson’s Mills Council voted unanimously to approve an agreement with the Clayton RFC to develop rugby fields at the town’s new athletic park complex located on Powhatan Road. One field is to be 100% dedicated to rugby and only to be used for games. The club was founded in 2013. It is located in Johnston County, North Carolina.

St. FX X-Women
The St. Francis Xavier X-Women are Canadian national university champions once again. On Sunday afternoon they defeated the Ottawa Gee-Gees by a score of 27-19 to claim their 4th title since 2010 and 5th since their first in 2006. The game was a tight forwards battle with the X-Women getting the edge in the scrum and through it the decisive score in the 75th minute. It brings to a close a tournament that saw several current international age-grade and senior caps take part with more no doubt grabbing the attention of selectors.

Tomás Leonardi, Juan Pablo Estellés, Djustice Sears-Duru
It was a weekend of firsts in club action for the Americas trio. Leonardi got his first competitive start in a Leicester Tigers jersey for their Anglo-Welsh Cup match against Bath on Friday. His countryman Estellés was only granted a bench spot for his senior Northampton debut but it was in a Saints team full of first team regulars. Canadian prop Sears-Duru earned his first Pro 12 start for Glasgow Warriors, squaring off against former Springbok tighthead Werner Kruger and Scarlets on Saturday.

Derek Sagehorn
Sage indeed! The appropriately named scrum guru and scribe for ThisIsAmericanRugby also pulled off the impossible by predicting the Irish victory. He was the only one out of 12 pundits from across the Americas to do so and now earns gloating rights for the week. With great success comes great expectation, however, and Mr. Sagehorn will have to stay on his toes for a busy week of predictions this coming weekend. For now we salute you.

Canada vs Ireland on CBC
The news that Canada’s test match against Ireland on Saturday would be aired live by leading broadcaster CBC is a much needed positive after the horrendous mid-week bombshell. Canadians can once again thank the Women’s 7s team for their Olympic Bronze Medal performance which has paved the way for the men to get their moment in the spotlight. Fans will share nervous excitement with the players throughout the week as their opponent has just beaten the best team in the world. While a win looks unlikely to say the least, Canada must perform to the height of its ability with so many potential new fans likely to tune in for the spectacle.

UNDER

USA Eagles
The Eagles were simply outclassed by the Maori on Friday. The reality is that many expected such a result with one team missing leading players and the other consisting of five capped All Blacks and loaded with Super Rugby experience. Organizers felt it was crucial to have the Eagles involved in the Chicago weekend which makes sense. It did, however, result in a terrible mismatch due to it falling outside of the international release window. Parity aside, the performance of John Mitchell’s men was also of grave concern with numerous errors both in decision making and execution. Thankfully reinforcements are on the way for the tests against Tonga and Romania.

No Live TV Coverage for Chicago Test
Ireland’s epic win over New Zealand was a massive commercial success and the rugby played was remarkable. Unfortunately for those not at the ground there was no means of watching the game live. How administrators could have committed such a howling blunder is anyone’s guess. Those in the USA were not alone in their rage, with Canada and large parts of Ireland and Australia also in the dark. Rugby fans all over the world deserve much, much better from individuals paid significant sums of money to ensure these kinds of ‘oversights’ do not happen. On Saturday the blazered brigade in the box seats failed their constituents miserably.

Rugby Canada and PRO Rugby
The seething disappointment of Saturday’s debacle only served to exacerbate what was a massively frustrating week for North American fans. Canadian fans already left out of the inaugural PRO Rugby season were left dumbstruck on Wednesday with the announcement that there would be no Canadian teams in season two either. In fact fans from either side of the border could not understand how Rugby Canada and PRO Rugby could squander what seems to be a massive opportunity to grow the sport on this side of the Atlantic. In the meantime PRO is struggling to find suitable venues for proposed expansion teams in Boston, Chicago, and New York, while the drums of competition continue to thump ever louder in the distance.

World Rugby Prematurely Shortlisting Awards
Through social media World Rugby is asking fans to vote for a range of annual awards. One example of this is the best try of 2016. Something is fundamentally wrong with World Rugby asking fans to do so before the start of the November Internationals. It means no tries this month, or in December, are to be considered for the award. As it happens one of Nicolás Sánchez’ two tries against Japan was deemed one of the best of the year. Unfortunately World Rugby have once again shot themselves in the foot.

Canada Miss Out on 2017 Irish Visit
This past week saw further details emerging for June 2017 tours. Canada, the USA ,and Japan are all to host three test matches against European opposition. Romania confirmed it will be playing one test against each of Canada and Japan though nothing has yet emerged regarding the USA. What is known is that Ireland will be playing two matches in Japan and one in the USA. New York is expected to host the match in North America. Canada, though, are to miss out with Ireland confirmed as not playing a match in the country.

Gonzalo Quesada
Long one of the biggest clubs in France, the glory days seem a distant past now for struggling Stade Français. The Parisian institution currently sits in 11th spot in the Top 14 and the telegrams all suggest that a mass player exodus is coming at the end of the season. Quesada’s departure may come much sooner. While his contract gives him until December 31 to seek renewal, a decision on his future is expected imminently with his resignation looking very likely.