Up and Under

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

 

UP

ATL underline MLR title credentials
Rugby ATL underlined their title credentials on Saturday with an 8-7 victory the Gold in New Orleans. Stifling humidity made for difficult playing conditions while lineout dominance saw NOLA controlling the majority of possession, but the Ratler defense was again the story of the day. The result extends ATL’s winning streak to six matches.

San Diego Legion back in play-off’s frame in the West
San Diego were 40-30 winners over the Arrows on Sunday. Three wins in a row have vaulted the Legion back into playoff contention. The team now has 29 points, two less than Austin. Notable was the arrival of two Māori international forwards in Tom Franklin and Dan Pryor, and the return of Chris Robshaw from injury. With three of their five remaining games at home, there is suddenly a lot of room for optimism for The Cohort.

Austin Gilgronis own the Texas Cup
The Texas Cup will spend the rest of the year in Austin as the Gilgronis defeated the Houston SaberCats 28-9 at AVEVA Stadium on Saturday evening. It was a sluggish match that needed a second wind from the visitors to pull away in the final quarter. The bonus-point win keeps Austin’s playoff hopes alive though this week’s game against Toronto is their last home game of the campaign.

Free Jacks beat Old Glory in try-filled thriller
Fans were treated to a thrilling spectacle at Union Point Stadium on Sunday as the two teams combined for a dozen tries. The game came right now to the wire with the Free Jacks taking a 38-34 result. Jason Robertson was in sparkling form for DC and very nearly conjured a game-winning try on the final act. The result all but ends Old Glory’s thoughts of a Semi Final but leaves the Free Jacks with a fighting chance.

Kilifi try saves Utah in Seattle
Olive Kilifi’s last-gasp try against his former team gave the Warriors a crucial bonus-point win over the Seawolves on Sunday. The hosts showed improvement in the rain but couldn’t quite close out the game in the final quarter. A loss would have blown the West Conference race wide open but as things stand Utah are still well placed to reach the postseason.

Benjamín Urdapilleta – top of the Top 14
Benjamín Urdapilleta is the Top 14’s top point scorer for 2020-21. The Argentine scored 323 points, including 28 points in the final round. He was one of only two players to surpass 300 points this season. Joris Segonds of Stade Français finished second with 306 points, one of eight Frenchmen in the top 10. He has been preferred for much of the campaign to Urdapilleta’s RWC 2019 teammate, Nicolás Sánchez.

Perpignan with Rosario Pumas earn promotion to Top 14
Perpignan are the 2021 Pro D2 champions. The Catalans defeated Biarritz 33-14 on Saturday to earn promotion to the Top 14. Rosario produced two players. Center Jerónimo de la Fuente comes from Duendes while flyhalf Patricio Fernández is from Jockey Club Rosario. The former has 56 caps and captained Los Jaguares in the 2019 Super Rugby Final. The latter earned two caps for Argentina in the 2013 South American Championship. Fernández and Pablo Matera made their test debuts together.

Gonzalo Quesada and Stade Français are back in the play-offs
Gonzalo Quesada guided Stade Français into the Top 14 play-offs for just the second time in 12 years. The first was in 2015 when Quesada took the team to the French national title. Former Jaguares players Marcos Kremer, Pablo Matera, and Nicolás Sánchez are playing for the Parisians. Stade Français finished the Top 14 regular season in 6th place. This sets up a barrage play-off against the 3rd-placed Racing 92 on Friday, June 11.

Young Blood – Canada looks to the future
A total of 16 uncapped players were named on Canada’s 40-man longlist for the July 2021 Internationals. They are spread across most positions and include players from MLR, Top 14, and five from the Pacific Pride. Kingsley Jones will have some difficult decisions as he trims the squad for the upcoming matches against Wales and England.

AJ MacGinty to lead Eagles
Gary Gold named the Sale Sharks flyhalf as captain for the July internationals. MacGinty will lead a fully professional 30-man roster packed with 22 Major League Rugby players, 10 of them uncapped. The Eagles will face England on July 4 in London and and Ireland six days later in Dublin. It will be the USA’s first taste of international competition since RWC 2019.

USA Eagles vs Canada – RWC Qualifier on 9/11
Glendale’s Infinity Park will be the setting for a Rugby World Cup 2023 qualifier on Saturday, September 11. The venue will play host to the second of two RWC qualifiers between the USA and Canada. The first game has been targeted for September 4 at a location to be determined. Both sides will have five weeks to prepare following the August 1 MLR Final.

Uruguayans for RWC Qualifiers
A group of 25 Uruguayan players began preparations for RWC 2023 qualifiers last week. Los Teros will play two home RWC qualifiers against South American opposition on July 18 and July 25. All named thus far are from Peñarol and will be joined by additional overseas talent who play in MLR and in Europe. The final roster for the RWC qualifiers in July is expected soon.

 

UNDER

UAR unable to secure pro tournament for Los Jaguares XV
The UAR have been working on securing a professional tournament for Los Jaguares XV. This saw the team take the place of Los Ceibos in the Súper Liga Americana de Rugby. Plans turned to South Africa’s Currie Cup, but the Argentine team will not play in the South African provincial competition in 2021. A new professional plan is required. Now is the time to back SLAR with additional Argentine franchises to support the growth of high performance rugby across South America.

A Second Argentine Super Rugby franchise nearly happened
In February 2020 plans were being finalized for a second Argentine Super Rugby franchise. The possibility ended with unprecedented changes to the competition. Super Rugby continues in a Trans Tasman format with two Pacific Island teams to join next season. Argentina do not feature in their future thinking. What might have been.

Jaguares Diaspora
23 months ago Argentina’s Jaguares competed in the 2019 Super Rugby Final against the Crusaders. 23 players took to the field for Los Jaguares in the final while a total of 40 received game time in the 2019 season. The brand name remains but 36 players have now emigrated. New players were handed opportunities in SLAR.

Pumas backs in doubt
Pumas backs Juan Imhoff and Matías Orlando are in doubt for July. The former faces a race against time, while the latter was injured playing for Newcastle on Saturday. An additional player or two will be added if required. Mario Ledesma has confirmed that it will be a European-based player with Juan Cruz Mallía most likely on standby.

Arrows off target
It’s hard to believe that despite owning the third-best overall points differential, the Arrows currently sit at the bottom of the Eastern Conference. Such are the fine margins in MLR this season. Toronto simply haven’t been able to execute at key moments. Inaccuracy at the lineout has plagued them all season and did so again on Saturday. Though they have not yet been mathematically eliminated, reality is now setting in that a Semi Final is not on the cards this year.

NOLA’s hopes fade with final home loss
Another team still in the mix on paper but realistically in trouble are the Gold. They have slipped behind the Free Jacks to 4th place and though they have a game at hand, all six games left on the schedule are on the road. Also contributing to the pessimistic forecast is that NOLA are set to lose as many as seven players to international duty for parts of that stretch.

Bonus Points punish Bayonne
Perpignan’s win over Biarritz followed Agen’s relegation from the Top 14. It means that one place remains unconfirmed in the 2021-22 Top 14 lineup. It will be settled this coming weekend. In a classic Basque derby Bayonne face Biarritz. This has transpired due to Bayonne losing on Saturday to Stade Français and Pau defeating Montpellier. With Pau and Bayonne on equal points it is Bayonne who face Biarritz due to having won fewer bonus points. Former Pumas lock Mariano Galarza will be on one side and Canadian counterpart Evan Olmstead on another.