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

Cayman Islands
The Cayman Islands toppled Bermuda on Saturday. The 28-15 away victory places Bermuda’s quest to remain in the Rugby Americas North – North Zone Championship Division in doubt. Doing so will depend on the result of their match against the USA South Panthers in two weeks time. Bermuda were overpowered by the Caymans. The home side trailed 17-0 at half time and ultimately did enough to complete the win. Next up for the Caymans is a tough assignment. They play host to Mexico on June 17.

Bahamas
The Bahamas came back to life on Saturday, completing a big win over the Dominican Republic. The 42-5 victory secured second spot in the Rugby Americas North – North Cup. With both sides already having fallen to the Turks & Caicos Islands Saturday’s match completed the international competition. The Bahamas won the match on the road. It was played at the Centro Olímpico Juan Pablo Duarte in Santo Domingo. Earlier fixtures saw the Bahamas and Dominican Republic losing by 10 and 9 points respectively against Turks & Caicos.

Paraguay, Colombia u19’s
Paraguay’s u19’s side are South American ‘B Champions. The u19 side completed a perfect 3-0 campaign in Colombia, defeating Peru, Venezuela and the host nation. The final round win over Colombia was a tight 21-19 win. Paraguay did very well to win in Colombia though given the standing of the senior sides of both and how new Colombia is comparatively to rugby this was also a significant triumph for Colombia. Moreover in round two Colombia ran-up a staggering 99-0 win over Peru. Paraguay’s win sees them booking a spot in the qualifiers for the 2018 World Rugby Junior World Trophy. Colombia, as runners-up, will now compete in the Rugby Americas North u19 tournament in Miami.

New Blood in Argentina, Canada Rosters
Felipe Arregui, Gonzalo Bertranou, Emiliano Boffelli and Bautista Ezcurra are all uncapped. The four players were named by Daniel Hourcade in the Pumas squad for this month’s internationals. For Canada Hubert Buydens, Sean Duke and Tyler Ardron return after lengthy time out. They are joined by Shane O’Leary and Andrew Coe as the new caps in the Canadian roster.

Patricio Fernández
With Patricio Fernández as a replacement, Clermont won the 2016-2017 Top 14 Final. The Central French side defeated Toulon 22-16 to claim their second ever French title. The prior title came against Perpignan in 2010. The 22-year-old Fernández joined Clermont from Rosario in 2015. Patricio Fernández has three more years left at Clermont before a possible return to Argentina will happen. So long as Fernández remains in France he will not be considered for international duty.

Patricio Albacete, Horacio Agulla, Facundo Isa
The Argentine trio of Patricio Albacete, Horacio Agulla and Facundo Isa played together on Thursday. The trio started for the Barbarians who took on Ulster in Northern Ireland. The Barbarians ran out 43-28 winners in what was a send off for Thierry Dusautoir. The former French captain is a close personal friend of Albacete and the two played together for over a decade at Toulouse. Albacete’s future remains undeclared while Agulla is to return to Hindú in Buenos Aires this month. Isa is on his way to Toulon to begin a two year contract.

Argentina National Rugby Center
The Unión Argentina de Rugby (UAR) has acquired an area of 32 hectares to transform into a National Rugby Center. The land is located in Camapan, 70km north of the national capital. Among those involved for the signing were UAR President Carlos Araujo and World Rugby Vice President Agustín Pichot. The latter is also the creator of the High Performance Plan. The facilities are to include between six and eight rugby fields, a gymnasium, dressing rooms and accommodation. This will enable national teams ranging from Los Pumas to youth sides and also Sevens and Women’s rugby teams to all use the Center. Brazil, Paraguay and Colombia also all have their own preparation facilities. Argentina’s is to be for training. No national stadium will be constructed on the premises.

UNDER

Peru u19’s
Winless in the South American B Championship were Peru. The Junior South American B Championship was a wake-up call for Peruvian rugby. The u19 side was unable to compete whatsoever in two of the three matches. Peru fell 99-0 to Colombia and 67-0 to Paraguay. Venezuela also failed to be competitive overall but did much better against the same opposition. In the battle to avoid the wooden spoon Venezuela downed Peru 23-17.

Argentina XV
Chile played very well on Saturday. The team was not expected to defeat the Argentina XV and did not do so. The Argentina XV were 31-15 winners over Los Cóndores but the margin of victory was of note. The corresponding fixture in 2016 saw the Argentina XV winning 87-12. In the Americas Rugby Championship the Argentina XV won 45-10 in 2017 and in 52-15 2016. Chile has, in other words, achieved tremendous improvement in being more competitive against the Argentina XV. The Pumas ‘B’ side, on the other hand, is not as strong compared to sides from the past.

Pumitas
After two of three pools games Los Pumitas have a 1-1 record in the Junior World Championship. The Argentine u20 side defeated Georgia in the opening round but fellow by the narrowest of margins to France in the second. The single-point defeat on Sunday has set up a must-win match for Argentina against South Africa on Wednesday. Overall Los Pumitas have played well. The tournament has also underlined a number of players for higher honors. A double from Juan Daireaux against France and try-saving tackles from Luciano González Rizzoni against Georgia are among the major points.

Canadians Missing in Action
Missing from Canada’s roster are Jamie Cudmore, Jebb Sinclair, Jeff Hassler and Matt Evans. All are experienced professionals who would have been expected to play leading roles in the test series. Taylor Paris meanwhile will miss the opening matches against Georgia and Romania, joining the team in Hamilton for the first World Cup Qualifier. Despite announcing his retirement, Cudmore’s absence remains something of a mystery with many still hoping he will turn up against the Eagles.

Pumas Wingers
Multiple wingers are injured for Argentina. As the team prepares to face England Daniel Hourcade is without Manuel Montero, Santiago Cordero and Ramiro Moyano. Of the three only Moyano stands a chance of facing England. This saw Emiliano Boffelli and Matías Moroni training as the starting wingers in training last week. Germán Schulz was also called in from the Argentina XV as cover. Against Chile on Saturday Boffelli took a knock to his left arm upon scoring. He is expected to be fine to play. Flanker Tomás Lezana has been ruled out.

Corcho Fernández Lobbe
Former Pumas captain Juan Martín Fernández Lobbe is reportedly set to announce his retirement. The 35-year-old played in the Top 14 Final for Toulon. His involvement was positive but cut-short. Upon making a half break Corcho was tackled and fell awkwardly and banged his head hard against the ground. This required him to be seen by a medic and Juan Smith would replace him for the final minutes. Fernández Lobbe joined Toulon in 2009 from the Sale Sharks. During his time at Toulon he has won both the Top 14 and European Champions Cup.