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Pumas are to be involved in the Top 14. Taking place on Sunday at the Stade de France, Toulon and Clermont will battle it out for French glory.
Both teams have been regulars in the final over the past decade yet neither have won since 2014. Toulon won that year, downing Castres 18-10. That marked the club’s first French title since 1992.
Clermont have been involved more frequently. The club won the Top 14 in 2010 by defeating Perpignan 19-6. It ended a losing streak after Clermont had been in the finals in 2007, 2008 and 2009. The central French club were also runners-up in seven additional seasons while 2010 is the club’s one national title.
Involved in the 2010 triumph were Americas’ players Jamie Cudmore, Mario Ledesma, Martín Scelzo and Gonzalo Canale. The Clermont days are now behind all of them though the club retains ties to the Americas. Featuring in the final tomorrow will be Patricio Fernández Fiant.
Aged 22 the Rosario fly half has been named on the Clermont bench, covering Camille Lopez. Fernández Fiant has two caps to his name. His appearances were in 2013 against Brazil and Chile. He is yet to be called-up to the senior roster and will not play for Argentina again for a considerable period. Earlier this year he signed to remain in France until after Rugby World Cup 2019.
Toulon’s 2014 title was revenge. The previous year Castres had beaten them in a shocking upset. That saw Uruguayan Rodrigo Capó Ortega making history to be a French champion. Playing flanker in the defeated team was Juan Martín Fernández Lobbe.
The now 35-year-old will play on the bench against Clermont this weekend. Fernández Lobbe will be looking for his second Top 14 title. He started at flanker in the 2014 triumph and was joined by Martín Castrogiovanni who was a replacement.
In claiming the French title, Fernández Lobbe and Castrogiovanni downed a Castres side continaing Capó Ortega and Ramiro Herrera. The latter of the two has subsequently returned to Argentina and is Los Jaguares’ first choice Tight Head prop.
The future of Fernández Lobbe remains undetermined. Reports from Midi Olympique indicate that he is to retire after the 2017 Final and to take-up a Forwards Coaching position at Toulon next season.
At present Fernández Lobbe is joined by two other players from the Americas at Toulon. They are USA enforcer Samu Manoa and Puma Axel Muller Aranda. Neither player is to feature in the final. The former is injured and unlikely to play for the USA this month.
Manoa has 17 caps for the USA while Muller Aranda’s representative rugby has been for the Argentina XV and Los Pumas 7’s. He is captured by Argentina despite never having played for Los Pumas. Fernández Lobbe made 71 appearances for Los Pumas. This included playing in three Rugby World Cups and being a constant in the side from 2004-2015.
