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

USA one step closer to qualifying for RWC 2023
The USA will represent North America in the Americas 1 qualifying series next month after dominating Canada by a score of 38-16 on Saturday evening. It made the aggregate score 59-50, a remarkable turnaround given Canada’s 20-point lead late in the game last weekend. In fact the 13-point deficit was long gone by halftime as the Eagles pack did a number on their opposites at the set piece. Hanco Germishuys and Ruben de Haas starred with three tries from the former and a stunning drop goal followed by a try for the latter.

Battle of the Birds for Americas 1
Americas 1 will be the USA or Uruguay. The battle of the birds will determine who qualifies for Rugby World Cup 2023 as Americas 1 – the Eagles or Los Teros. This was expected, though the way in which it transpired was far from following the script. The USA lost by 13 points against Canada while Uruguay narrowly avoided a home defeat against Chile. Had there been a TMO then Chile may well have won by being awarded a penalty try. Be that as it may, Chile now face Canada in an elimination series.

Nicolás Sánchez reaches 90 caps
History was made on Sunday; Nicolás Sánchez became Argentina’s most capped player of all-time. The fly half from Tucumán earned his 90th test cap, thereby setting a new Pumas record. This saw him overtaking the mark of 89 set by former captain Agustín Creevy. Sánchez has been a Puma since 2010. He made his test debut against Uruguay in May 2010. He is now 3 caps behind the all-time Americas reocrd of 93 held by Uruguayan Diego Magno.

Pumas to represent Barbarians
Los Pumas are to have two players in the Barbarians side to face Samoa at Twickenham on November 27. Pablo Matera has been publicly confirmed, while Pumas Sevens star Marcos Moneta has also received an invitation. Matera has worn the famous black and white stripes on one occasion previously, against England in 2015. This will be the first appearance for Moneta. The 21-year-old flyer has enjoyed a breakout year after helping Argentina secure a Bronze Medal at the Tokyo Olympics.

Canadian flankers return to action in Premier 15s
A pair of Canadian flankers were notable inclusions on Premier 15s lineups this weekend. Sara Svoboda made her competitive return for Loughborough from a knee injury suffered in December of last year, while new signing Janna Slevinsky debuted for Saracens in their dominant win over Durham Sharks. Several other North Americans were in action across the league with an impressive eight named in the Exeter Chiefs lineup that was captained by Eagles skipper Kate Zackary.

Free Jacks import new coaches
The New England Free Jacks have confirmed Scott Mathie as their new Head Coach for the 2022 Major League Rugby season and beyond. He arrives from South Africa and fills the gap left by Ryan Martin’s departure to the Melbourne Rebels after one season in charge. Also incoming is Mike Rogers from New Zealand, who will be Mathie’s senior Assistant Coach in charge of the forwards and defense. With a new home ground already in place, the Free Jacks are in good shape heading towards the 2022 season.

UNDER

Argentina not good enough
Mario Ledesma made no excuses for Sunday’s performance. He was clear in not pointing blame at the officials; he accepted that this was a case of his team being hammered. The extent of the defeat runs deeper than the 39-0 scoreline; Los Pumas were lost on the field. The gameplan was a disaster and this was not a one-off; indeed, the team had the identical strategy in the two losses against South Africa as well as the July test matches against Romania and Wales.

Canada from high to low with reality check
What a difference a week makes. After their stunning upset over the Eagles in St. John’s, Canada came crashing down to earth in Glendale. The lineout was a mess and the scrum not much better. When they did have possession, much was kicked away with little chance of recovery. Which team will show up in Victoria? Chile are no longer pushovers, they are a well-coached outfit who gave Uruguay a major scare earlier this year. October 2 is now a day of enormous importance to Canadian rugby.

Nathan Hirayama hangs up his boots
One of Canada’s all-time greatest players has announced his retirement. Nathan Hirayama brings to a close a 15-year international career that was capped by the honor of carrying the Canadian flag during the opening ceremony of the Tokyo Olympics. His resume is impressive. In addition to holding the third-highest points total in World Sevens history, Hirayama won Gold twice and Silver once at the Pan Am Games, won the Singapore Sevens in 2017, and traveled to three World Cups while winning 23 test caps.

World Sevens Series
World Rugby’s hopes for a meaningful Sevens Series in 2021 have been dashed. With only two tournaments remaining for the Men and no full events for the Women, there was a further blow this week as France pulled out of Vancouver and Edmonton citing differences in vaccine protocol between the Canadian and French authorities. Most of the top teams have already withdrawn and those that are left have nominated development sides.

Pressure building on Mario Ledesma
The response from supporters has been telling: there are calls for Ledesma to step down. The traditional Argentine rugby media avoids criticisizing the team. Such an approach cannot persist unless the performances and results change abruptly. As they say in Argentina, the cycle has concluded. This was widely used in response to the performances against Wales under Daniel Hourcade in June 2018. Make no mistake, the current situation mirrors that of the end of Hourcade. Ledesma does not have time; an immediate response is needed or his position as head coach will be unsustainable.