Americas Rugby News Rugby news from across the Americas!
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
Peru
Two wins in a week have seen Peru win the 2018 Sudamérica 4 Naciones B competition. A 36-14 win over Costa Rica started it off, and the Tumis clinched the title with a dominant 34-0 result over Guatemala in Antigua on Saturday. The tournament was meant to be contested by four teams but Venezuela were forced to drop out after their visas were denied.
For the third time in 2018 Canada have been defeated by Uruguay. This time it was the ‘A’ sides of each team, with the hosts earning a 35-21 victory at the Americas Pacific Challenge. In truth the two teams were stronger than typical ‘A’ sides, and the hosts have again proved a step ahead of their northern competition.
New Orleans Gold
Their campaign didn’t quite go as planned in the inaugural Major League Rugby season but the Gold look determined to make an impact in 2019. Last week it was South African center Tristan Blewett. This week they added Scott Gale, an Australian with Super Rugby experience. More additions are on the way as the MLR signing season heats up.
Austin Elite are set to announce the signing of a second Uruguayan international for the 2019 Major League Rugby season. Echeverría will join Teros teammate Andrés Vilaseca in Texas as the new American professional competition opens its doors to a number of South Americans players. The tighthead prop has won 42 caps since making his Teros debut in 2014.
Agustín Creevy, Matías Alemanno, Nahuel Tetaz Chaparro
On Saturday the Pumas skipper wrote his name down in history. The flanker who converted to hooker became the most capped Argentine captain of all time. In leading his country against Australia Creevy surpassed Lisandro Arbizu’s mark of 48 tests as skipper. In the same match Alemanno and Tetaz Chaparro reached 50 test caps. It’s unfortunate the occasion wasn’t accompanied by a test victory.
UNDER
A record-setting second half collapse saw Argentina blow a 31-7 lead and crash to an embarrassing 45-34 defeat at Salta on Saturday. The 24-point deficit overcome by the Wallabies is a Rugby Championship record, with Australia scoring 38 points after the break including five tries. In doing so the Pumas are again condemned to finish at the bottom of the table despite a first-ever two-win campaign. Argentina have shown improvement under Mario Ledesma but there is still much to be done in the next 12 months.
Samoa ‘A’ ended the Argentina XV’s two-year unbeaten run in the Americas Pacific Challenge with a stunning 36-31 victory on Saturday. The Argentines outscored Samoa five tries to four but 14 points from the boot of D’Angelo Leuila proved the difference. Discipline and mistakes proved costly and in one fell swoop the tournament favorites have been bounced down the ladder.
Tonga ‘A’ scored 17 points in the final minutes to overcome an eight-point deficit and secure a 39-30 win over the USA Select XV in Montevideo on Saturday. It was a shaky start to the Americas Pacific Challenge for the Americans. Despite some strong attacking moments the defense was not up to scratch as they conceded two tries with a man advantage late in the match.
The loss to Uruguay was undoubtedly a disappointment and does nothing to help Canadian confidence ahead of the World Cup qualifiers. Most concerning was the scrum, where the team was thoroughly dominated and conceded a penalty try to end the first half. After also struggling badly on their France tour, Canada has some work to do on the set piece.
Urdapilleta is out of rugby for two months after undergoing surgery on his thumb. The injury was sustained in Castres’ impressive away victory over Toulouse this past weekend. It’s a blow for one of the leading flyhalves in France, and for his club just ahead of the opening rounds of the Champions Cup.
