photo credit: UAR

Several new faces in Jaguares squad

Gonzalo Quesada has included several new players in his first Jaguares training squad ahead of the 2019 Super Rugby season. Ten players were not part of the training group last year while Rodrigo Bruni is yet to make his Jaguares debut despite earning three test caps for the Pumas in November.

Seven players have been called up from the Pumitas squad that competed at the World Rugby u20 Championship in June. Props Mayco Vivas and Lucio Sordoni, second row Lucas Paulos, flanker Santiago Grondona, midfielder Santiago Chocobares, and outside backs Ignacio Mendy and Santiago Carreras are included. Mendy is the youngest at only 18 with Chocobares still four months shy of his 20th birthday.

Hooker Gaspar Baldunciel, second row Franco Molina, No8 Rodrigo Bruni, and flyhalf Domingo Miotti all graduate from the Argentina XV squad. Bruni is a direct replacement for Pumas veteran Leonardo Senatore, the most notable absentee in the group.

The selection of Miotti is an important one. With the retirement of Juan Martín Hernández and the departure of Nicolás Sánchez to Stade Français, there are three flyhalf options but only four Super Rugby starts at No10 between them with Joaquín Díaz Bonilla and Santiago González Iglesias starting twice each at the pivot position. Miotti has excelled at each level thus far and will now have the chance to test himself against some of the world’s best players.

Fringe players left out of the group include props Felipe Arregui, Franco Brarda, and Nicolás Leiva, back rowers Benjamín Macome and Santiago Montagner, scrumhalf Felipe Ezcurra, and center Santiago Álvarez. Ezcurra was included in the Argentina XV squad to prepare for the Americas Rugby Championship while Álvarez has rejoined the Pumas Sevens program.

Other notable inclusions see the returns of tighthead prop Enrique Pieretto and fullback Joaquín Tuculet from long-term knee injuries. Both missed the entirety of the 2018 test season. Tomás Cubelli is also set to make his Jaguares debut after missing the 2018 campaign with injury and playing the two previous seasons with the Brumbies.

Preseason training will begin on Thursday, January 3.

NAME POS AGE SR INT
Díaz, Javier LH 23 3 3
García Botta, Santiago LH 26 33 33
Tetaz Chaparro, Nahuel LH/TH 29 50 50
Vivas, Mayco LH 20
Baldunciel, Gaspar HO 22
Creevy, Agustín HO 33 42 83
Fortuny, Diego HO 27 1 1
Montoya, Julián HO 25 38 51
Medrano, Santiago TH 22 7 11
Pieretto, Enrique TH 24 16 23
Sordoni, Lucio TH 20 2
Zeiss, Juan Pablo TH/LH 29 10 6
Alemanno, Matías LO 27 38 53
Lavanini, Tomás LO 25 31 50
Molina, Franco LO 21
Paulos, Lucas LO 20
Petti, Guido LO 24 44 45
Grondona, Santiago FL 20
Kremer, Marcos FL 21 28 21
Lezana, Tomás FL 24 27 30
Matera, Pablo FL 25 35 58
Bruni, Rodrigo N8 25 3
Leguizamón, Juan Manuel N8 35 23 85
Ortega Desio, Javier N8 28 27 51
Bertranou, Gonzalo SH 24 39 19
Cubelli, Tomás SH 29 18 69
Landajo, Martín SH 30 34 84
Díaz Bonilla, Joaquín FH 29 9 1
González Iglesias, Santiago FH/CE 30 23 43
Miotti, Domingo FH 22
Chocobares, Santiago CE 19
de la Fuente, Jerónimo CE 27 34 46
Ezcurra, Bautista CE 23 22 5
Mendy, Ignacio CE/FB 18
Moroni, Matías CE 27 22 40
Orlando, Matías CE 27 41 39
Boffelli, Emiliano WI/FB 23 34 23
Cancelliere, Sebastián WI 22 9 6
Delguy, Bautista WI 21 15 11
Moyano, Ramiro WI 28 26 30
Carreras, Santiago FB 20
Mallía, Juan Cruz FB 22 3 4
Tuculet, Joaquín FB 29 36 51

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