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Felipe Contepomi has made 10 changes to the Argentina XV roster for game 2 against Toulon. The teams will meet on Friday at Tucumán Lawn Tennis Club. Kick-off is scheduled for 9pm.
The fixture is Toulon’s second of as many pre-season matches ahead of the 2017-2018 Top 14. For the Argentina XV the matches serve as a combination of High Performance training and preparation for the Rugby Championship.
The opening match took place on Saturday at CASI in Buenos Aires. The Argentina XV impressed, running-out 45-24 winners. With game time required ahead of the Rugby Championship Felipe Arregui and Manuel Montero started. Gonzalo Bertranou, Gaspar Bandunciel and Marcos Kremer were also all involved.
The 28-man roster to play in Tucumán sees the roster strengthened. Of the 10 added players five were unavailable for game one due to their involvement in the Nacional de Clubes Final. Returning are captain Lautaro Bavaro, Franco Brarda, Sebastián Cancelliere, Franco Cuaranta, Joaquín Díaz Bonilla and Germán Schulz.
Brarda, Cuaranta and Schultz played for runners-up Tala while Bavaro, Cancelliere and Díaz Bonilla did so for champions Hindú. Cancelliere was the starting Argentina XV in this years Americas Rugby Championship. Hindú, though, play him as a winger. Against Toulon he has been included by Contepomi to play on the wing.
The additional players joining the roster are Eduardo Bello, Lautaro Bazán Vélez, Juan Cruz Mallía and Franco Molina. Bazán Vélez and Bertranou are the two scrum-halves for the fixture. Cancelliere is one of four wingers. The others are Montero, Cuaranta and German Schultz.
| # | PLAYER | POSITION | CLUB | UNION |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Felipe Arregui | Prop | Duendes | Rosario |
| 2 | Gaspar Baldunciel | Hooker | Asociación Alumni | URBA |
| 3 | Eduardo Bello | Prop | Atlético del Rosario | URBA |
| 4 | Lautaro Bavaro | Flanker | Hindú | URBA |
| 5 | Lautaro Bazán Vélez | Scrum-half | Córdoba Athletic | Cordobesa |
| 6 | Franco Brarda | Prop | Tala RC | Cordobesa |
| 7 | Rodrigo Bruni | No 8 | San Luis | URBA |
| 8 | Sebastián Cancelliere | Wing | Hindú | URBA |
| 9 | Franco Cuaranta | Wing | Tala RC | Cordobesa |
| 10 | Bautista Delguy | Fullback | Pucará | URBA |
| 11 | Joaquín Díaz Bonilla | Fly half | Hindú | URBA |
| 12 | Rodrigo Etchart | Wing | SIC | URBA |
| 13 | Felipe Ezcurra | Scrum-half | Jaguares | UAR |
| 14 | Francisco Ferronato | Prop | Belgrano Athletic | URBA |
| 15 | Diego Galletto | Second-row | Urú Curé | Cordobesa |
| 16 | Agustín Gómez di Nardo | Hooker | Belgrano Athletic | URBA |
| 17 | Juan Cruz González | Fly half | CUBA | URBA |
| 18 | Francisco Gorrisen | Flanker | Belgrano Athletic | URBA |
| 19 | Tomás Granella | Center | Liceo | Cuyo |
| 20 | Marcos Kremer | Second-row | Jaguares | UAR |
| 21 | Fernando Luna | Fullback | Córdoba Athletic | Cordobesa |
| 22 | Juan Cruz Mallía | Center | Jockey | Cordobesa |
| 23 | Santiago Medrano | Prop | Regatas | URBA |
| 24 | Franco Molina | Second-row | Jockey | Cordobesa |
| 25 | Manuel Montero | Wing | Jaguares | UAR |
| 26 | Santiago Portillo | No 8 | Los Tarcos | Tucumán |
| 27 | Mairano Romanini | Flanker | Asociación Alumni | URBA |
| 28 | German Schulz | Wing | Tala RC | Cordobesa |
