Americas Rugby News Rugby news from across the Americas!
Los Pumas will conclude their 2021 international duties with a three match tour of Europe next month. Head Coach Mario Ledesma has named a 32-man roster for the tour. It comes with changes from the 2021 Rugby Championship with players dropped, some returnees and opportunities for uncapped players.
Julián Montoya will captain the side from hooker. He is one of three hookers on the roster. Fellow former Jaguar Facundo Bosch will be the understudy while the uncapped Ignacio Ruiz will be pushing for a first cap. Santiago Socino has been dropped while the in-form Agustín Creevy also misses out. Ruiz is one of four players not based abroad.
Ledesma has opted for six props, three covering loose head and three options for tight head. 2021 rookies Thomas Gallo, and Facundo Gigena join the veteran of RWC 2015 and 2019, Nahuel Tetaz Chaparro as the loose heads. Carlos Muzzio misses out as does Rodrigo Martínez. Mayco Vivas continues to recover following surgery at the start of the year.
The first notable change comes at tight head. Enrique Pieretto has been dropped for the November Internationals. Ledesma has retained Eduardo Bello who debuted in the final match of the Rugby Championship. Bello joins Francisco Gómez Kodela and Santiago Medrano on the roster.
Indications are that Marcos Kremer will be playing predominantly at lock. He is one of four players who can ber listed as second-rowers. The others are Matías Alemanno, Tomás Lavanini, and Guido Petti. Lucas Paulos is again missing.
Ledesma welcomes back Facundo Isa into the back-row options. He joins Rodrigo Bruni as the N8 possibilities while Joaquín Oviedo misses out. New London Irish signing Juan Martín González is one of three flankers. He joins the fit-again Santiago Grondona and former captain Pablo Matera. Francisco Gorrissen and Tomás Lezana have been dropped.
Also missing is Felipe Ezcurra. He started game one of the Rugby Championship only to fall to third behind Gonzalo Bertanou and rookie Gonzalo García. Tomás Cubelli to see the balance retained at three specialist scrum-halves.
A notable decision comes at fly half. Domingo Miotti has been dropped and there is no recall for Benjamín Urdapilleta nor a call-up for Tomás Albornoz or Patricio Fernández. Instead, Ledesma will continue with Santiago Carreras out of position with Nciolas Sánchez as the one permanent fly half on the roster.
Centers Santiago Chocobares and Matías Orlando miss out through injury. This coincides with the return of Jerónimo de la Fuente. He joins Lucio Cinti, Matías Moroni and the returning Lucas Mensa on the roster. Mensa had one cap in 2020 and was not selected for the July 2021 Internationals or the Rugby Championship.
The back-three sees no place for either Santiago Cordero or Juan Imhoff. Also missing out are Sebastián Cancelliere, Ramiro Moyano and the uncapped Marcos Moneta. Ledesma has gone for Emiliano Boffelli, Mateo Carreras, Facundo Cordero, and Bautista Delguy. Facundo Cordero is uncapped while Delguy returns after missing half of the Rugby Championship through injury.
Juan Cruz Mallía is the one official fullback on the roster. Other options exist in the form of Boffelli, Mateo Carreras, Facundo Cordero, or Delguy moving from wing or Santiago Carreras doing so from fly half. This decision comes with Ignacio Mendy not selected.
NOVEMBER INTERNATIONALS – ARGENTINA ROSTER
LOOSE HEAD
Thomas Gallo (Benetton, IT), Facundo Gigena (London Irish, UK), Nahuel Tetaz Chaparro (Benetton, IT)
HOOKER
Facundo Bosch (La Rochelle, FR), Julián Montoya (Leicester Tigers, UK), Ignacio Ruiz (Jaguares XV)
TIGHT HEAD
Eduardo Bello (Zebre, IT), Francisco Gómez Kodela (Lyon, FR), Santiago Medrano (Western Force, AU)
SECOND-ROW
Matías Alemanno (Gloucester, UK), Marcos Kremer (Stade Français, FR), Tomás Lavanini (Clermont, FR), Guido Petti (Bordeaux, FR)
BACK-ROW
Rodrigo Bruni (Vannes, FR), Juan Martín González (London Irish, UK), Santiago Grondona (unattached), Facundo Isa (Toulon, FR), Pablo Matera (Crusaders, NZ)
SCRUM HALF
Gonzalo Bertranou (Dragons, UK), Tomás Cubelli (Biarritz, FR), Gonzalo García (Valorugby Emilia, IT)
FLY HALF
Santiago Carreras (Gloucester, UK), Nicolás Sánchez (Stade Français, FR)
CENTER
Lucio Cinti (unattached), Jerónimo de la Fuente (Perpignan, FR), Lucas Mensa (Mont de Marsan, FR), Matías Moroni (Leicester Tigers, UK)
WING
Emiliano Boffelli (Edinburgh, UK), Mateo Carreras (Newcastle Falcons, UK), Facundo Cordero (Exeter Chiefs, UK), Bautista Delguy (Perpignan, FR)
FULLBACK
Juan Cruz Mallía (Toulouse, FR)
NOVEMBER INTERNATIONALS – ARGENTINA FIXTURES
Saturday, November 06 – France vs Argentina (Paris, FR)
Saturday, November 13 – Italy vs Argentina (Treviso, IT)
Sunday, November 21 – Ireland vs Argentina (Dublin, IR)
