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At the age of 35, Juan Pablo Orlandi has ended his playing career. The Mendoza native was a Puma from 2008-2015, and had the distinction of playing in a winning effort to get Argentina into the RWC 2015 Semi Finals.
The tight head prop had a long career as a professional in Europe, doing so after leaving Marista. He would play in Italy (Brescia, Rovigo), France (Racing 92, Pau, Bayonne) and England (Bath and Newcastle).
His test debut saw him thrust into the starting line-up for Los Pumas against France. He would join Rodrigo Roncero and Mario Ledesma in the Argentine front-row for the 2018 November Internationals.
Now a decade on he has retired as a player but will remain in rugby. He will be working for Bayonne’s academy, a solid starting point for a prospective future as a rugby coach.
As a player Orlandi earned 20 caps for Los Pumas. The final four came at RWC 2015 with him starting against Namibia and coming on from the bench against Tonga, Ireland, and South Africa. In his final cap he would score a test try.
