Chile have named a preliminary senior ‘A’ squad of 32 players for the upcoming Americas Pacific Challenge. The group will be reduced to 28 ahead of the tournament that begins on October 22 in Montevideo, with matches against the development sides from Paraguay, Uruguay, and the USA.
While tournament rules stipulate that five of the 28 are permitted to be over the age of 23, only three are included in the group and all are prop forwards – Mauricio Gómez, Esteban Inostroza, and Vittorio Lastra. Otherwise the selection is largely derived of age grade internationals.
The SLAR franchise Selknam provides six players plus another six who were part of the preseason extended training roster. Another four have recently played for the Cóndores Sevens side, with promising flyhalf Diego Warnken part of both groups.
Included are seven members of the traveling party that will compete against Canada next weekend in the first leg of the Americas 2 World Cup Qualifier series. Inostroza and Lastra are joined by another prop Salvador Lues, hookers Diego Escobar and Raimundo Martínez, second row Santiago Pedrero, and scrumhalf Lukas Carvallo. Martínez is set to play flanker against Canada.
PROP: Mauricio Gómez (Old Lions), Baltazar Gurruchaga (Old Johns), Esteban Inostroza (PWCC / Selknam), Vittorio Lastra (Old Macks), Salvador Lues (COBS / Selknam)
HOOKER: Jorge Delgado (Uni Católica), Diego Escobar (COBS), Raimundo Martínez (PWCC / Selknam)
SECOND ROW: Agustín Fernández (PWCC), Jaime Paredes (Alumni), Santiago Pedrero (COBS / Selknam), Manuel Ripamonti (Old Georgians), Maximiliano Silva (Uni Católica / Selknam)
BACK ROW: Joaquín Milesi (PWCC), Agustín Pérez (Sporting), Nicolás Sabaleta (Sporting), Ernesto Tchimino (DOBS)
SCRUMHALF: Lukas Carvallo (PWCC / Selknam), Benjamín Videla (Old Boys)
FLYHALF: Tomás Álvarado (Old Boys), Ignacio Arias (DOBS), Diego Warnken (Alumni)
CENTER: Clemente Armstrong (DOBS), Gaspar Moltedo (Old Macks), Juan Ignacio Piña (PWCC), Julián Troncoso (Old Macks), Thomas Winkler (Alumni)
WING/FULLBACK: Cristóbal Game (Old Johns), Baltazar Jana (Alumni), Luca Strabucchi (Alumni), Vicente Tredinick (Alumni), Vicente Urbina (Alumni)