Up and Under

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

 

UP

Rugby Americas North (RAN) Championship
An overhaul has taken place for the 2018 RAN Championship. The new-look competition sees three divisions with the top one officially counting as promotion – relegation to the Americas Rugby Challenge. The format sees opportunities for all and there is room for additional countries to feature in following years. The USA South Panthers will continue to compete. Meanwhile efforts have been made to provide all member countries with international rugby this year. Turks and Caicos will play against the British Virgin Islands on May 12 while St. Vincent and the Grenadines will face St. Lucia on a yet to be determined date.

New Orleans Gold, Glendale Raptors
The New Orleans Gold recorded a 48-17 win over the Austin Elite at Archbishop Shaw Field on Saturday. It represented a major turnaround in fortunes for the home side after stuttering in earlier matches against Major League Rugby competition. In Utah the Glendale Raptors ran out 42-15 winers over the Utah Warriors. While the home side fell short they had an impressive 9,186 supporters in attendance at Rio Tinto Stadium. A great sign ahead of the regular season.

Boston Rugby
It might be just the Mystics for now, but Saturday’s match on Harvard Campus was a promising sign for a potential MLR franchise in the future. A sold-out crowd at Mignone Field were treated to an entertaining match that saw Boston run New York close before fading in the final quarter. If it had been a fully representative New England side the story may have been different. As the Ontario Arrows get set to take on Utah this coming Friday, professional rugby in the east is ready to take off.

Halifax Rugby
The news isn’t quite official just yet, but Halifax will be hosting the US Eagles at Wanderers Grounds this June. It’s the second time the Nova Scotia capital has hosted a senior Canadian men’s match in recent years but the first full test. Not only is it a boost for the city and province but also for the Maritime region who have only had one previous international, a notable win for Canada over a ‘Scotland XV’ at Saint John, New Brunswick, in 1991.

Francisco Ulloa
Newman flyhalf Francisco Ulloa had what he called a dream of a match on Saturday. Playing against La Tablada in the Nacional de Clubes, Ulloa scored four tries. His team ran out comfortable winners over the Córdoba club, completing a 59-14 victory. The result means the club occupies second spot of their group. Newman is a Buenos Aires club and among Argentina’s finest. Among the alumni is none other than World Rugby Hall of Famer Felipe Contepomi.

Santiago Cordero
It did not take long for Cordero’s move from Los Jaguares to the Exeter Chiefs to pay off. There Argentine flyer is an Anglo-Welsh Cup Champion in quick time. He now has an Aviva Premiership title in his sights. With his current contract running until June it remains to be seen if he will be involved with Los Pumas immediately after. His involvement at Exeter has seen him return to his preferred role at fullback. Joaquín Tuculet has dominated the position for both Los Jaguares and Los Pumas.

Blaine Scully, Facundo Isa
The Eagles captain scored the second and final try of the Challenge Cup Quarter Final for Cardiff Blues on Saturday. The win over Edinburgh sees the Welsh region qualifying for the Semi Finals of the competition. In the Champions Cup Facundo Isa had a monstrous performance for Toulon who fell against Munster. Were it not for a lapse of concentration from Françaois Trinh-Duc then Isa would be in the Semi Finals.

Tyler Ardron
Two starts in as many weeks for Ardron and two winning performances. This is nothing short of sensational for a Canadian in Super Rugby. Ardron packed down alongside 2014 World Rugby Player of the Year Brodie Retallick in the second row for the Chiefs. Ardron’s success at lock is pause for thought with some keen to see him reprise that role with Canada. The lack of a genuine alternative at No8, however, likely means his international position will still be at the back of the scrum come the June tests.

Estadio Charrúa
The home of Uruguayan Rugby, the Estadio Charrúa is among the best venues in the Americas. The enchanting surroundings, viewing of the field and facilities are all a part of the experience. What is good is going to become even better as renovations are coming to stadium. It is to be upgraded for the Women’s u17 Soccer World Cup which takes places this year in November and December. It will have a synthetic playing surface, coming at a cost of US$550,000. Rugby is set to benefit for the long haul with moves underway for it to remain a rugby venue until 2032.

 

UNDER

No Test Rugby in Toronto this Year
Unless something unpredictable occurs it looks as though Toronto will not be hosting any international rugby this year. Edmonton will welcome Scotland this June and the USA will head to Halifax. A third test is set to take place at Twin Elm Park in Ottawa with Russia the tentative opponent pending the outcome of World Rugby’s investigation into the European Qualification fiasco. It’s a harsh blow for the largest city in Canada, a hotbed for rugby that has produced record attendances in the past. The rugby populace won’t be completely shut out of high quality rugby – they have at least two Ontario Arrows matches to look forward to including a high-profile tilt against Rugby United New York coming up on April 14.

Romania
These are dark times for Romania, who could lose their place in the World Cup if Spanish sources are correct. Romania’s error in enabling a Tongan international to play for the Oaks throughout their RWC 2019 qualifiers may well see their place in Pool A handed to either Spain or Russia. Precisely what will happen won’t be revealed until later this week. It looks a tragic result for Romania whose road has been tumultuous. An upset loss to Spain resigned them to the Repechage but the controversial result in Brussels then appeared to hand them a lifeline. Not it seems they may have no route at all to the World Cup, a first for the country who has taken part in every such tournament since the first in 1987.

Rugby Europe Scandal
Prior to the arrival of the mess that has entangled Romania, Rugby Europe were already under severe pressure. Their appalling handling of the officials for the RWC 2019 qualifying match between Belgium and Spain had destroyed the reputation of the regional body. Since then things have only worsened. Just this past week Russia filed a formal complaint about Romania’s use of Faka’osilea, and Germany questioned the legitimacy of players from Belgium and Spain. That all of this happened in a single World Cup qualifying series suggests that major changes are in store for Rugby Europe when the hammer falls.

Player Eligibility Mess
The entire Rugby Europe and World Rugby fiasco saw player eligibility again returning to the forefront of the sport of rugby. The controversy highlighted one of rugby’s gravest sins – the lack of universal laws for all. Allowing nations to arbitrarily nominate their under-20s as ‘Next Senior’ representative sides has achieved nothing but unwanted criticism. Thankfully that ridiculous practice has now been ended but World Rugby must again review its eligibility regulations and come to a consensus that is understood and accepted by all parties. A thorough review of the mechanisms of confirming eligibility is also required.

Juan Martín Fernández Lobbe
The career of the legendary Juan Martín Fernández Lobbe is on the line. The three-time World Cup Pumas flanker suffered a broken thumb playing for Toulon again Clermont in a recent Top 14 match. He now faces a race against time to be fit again for future Top 14 matches. There regular season is set to be over before he he cleared  to play again, and with retirement likely looming at season’s end he needs Toulon to make it to the play-off’s to have the opportunity of playing again for the French club.

Natación y Gimnasia
The Tucumán club fell to a humiliating 75-11 defeat at the hands of San Luis on Saturday. The fixture was part of the Nacional de Clubes, Argentina’s domestic club competition. Alumni, Newman, and Pucará also all recorded impressive wins but San Luis’ triumph sent shockwaves throughout the country.