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

Mexico win big against Cayman Islands
Mexico played host to the Cayman Islands on Saturday afternoon. The match in Mexico City was the final test match for teams from the Americas for the year of 2021. Las Serpientes were 39-13 winners at home against the Caymans. Las Serpientes were in control of the contest and came away with a six tries to one victory. Attention now turns to 2022 and hopefully to a return of Mexico test matches against South American opposition in the Americas Rugby Challenge.

Karen Paquin makes Dream Team
Karen Paquin was selected to the official 2021 World Rugby Women’s 15s Dream Team of the Year. The Canadian flanker is the only Americas representative named in the side that is comprised of players from six different nations. Canada returned to test rugby after a two-year hiatus this fall, with Paquin starting in both tests against the USA in Colorado and against England in London. She scored a memorable solo try in the second test against the Women’s Eagles. Earlier in the year Paquin competed in sevens at the Tokyo Olympics.

Marcos Moneta is the Best in the World
Marcos Moneta took out the top award for Men’s Rugby Sevens players. The 21-year-old Argentine won the 2021 World Rugby’s Sevens Men’s Player of the Year. The award was part of the World Rugby Awards. Moneta was an Olympic Bronze Medalist this year. His remarkable heroics against South Africa saw Argentina into the Olympic Semi Finals. Moneta ran in two tries in a performance in which Argentina had a player red carded and finished the Quarter Final with 5 men. The speedster from San Andrés was also a tryscorer in the Bronze Final. Los Pumas 7’s were 17-12 winners over Great Britain.

Uruguay’s road to RWC 2023
Uruguay’s early qualification for RWC 2023 has Los Teros in unchartered waters. The South Americans end 2021 with the mission of qualifying for the RWC having happened comparatively early. 2022 and 2023 will give the staff and players added time to prepare. Uruguay’s young roster will probably be similar to RWC 2019. 2022 will be a bonus year to prepare.

URBA Top 12 Final
CUBA are the 2021 URBA Top 12 champions. Universitario defeated SIC 10-9 in what was a cliffhanger. The match was lively; SIC missed drop-goal attempt in the final minute. Played at La Catedral in San Isidro, 8,000 were in attendance. The match served as a reminder of the success of the club game in Buenos Aires. Clubs are the heartbeat of Argentine rugby. Both teams have produced many Pumas over the years. Current Pumas are Facundo Bosch and Matías Moroni are from CUBA. Guido Petti is from SIC.

Rugby ATL turn to Silverbacks Park
Rugby ATL have made their move to Silverbacks Park official. Their previous home of Lupo Family Field on the Life University campus recently suffered extensive damage due to flooding in the area and reconstruction is not expected to be completed until the spring. Located at the north-east end of the Atlanta metropolitan area, the stadium features a 5,000 seat capacity with a FieldTurf surface.

Attention turns to the MLR Preseason
The Seattle Seawolves will host a Rugby Canada West Selects side on January 28, with the Toronto Arrows booking a road game against Old Glory DC on January 21. Both sides have confirmed two preseason matches ahead of the 2022 Major League Rugby regular season. Toronto are set to play against Old Glory at The St. James, their indoor training facility in Springfield, Virginia. The Arrows were unable to play any preseason games in 2021. Providing opposition in the second match for both teams will be the UBC Old Boy Ravens, current holders of the BC Premier League’s Rounsefell Cup.

Argentines Shine in European Challenge and Champions Cup
This past weekend saw strong performances from Argentines in the European Challenge and Champions Cup tournaments. Juan Imhoff ran in two tries for Racing 92. The Parisians were big winners over the Northampton Satins in a road match. Former Pumas skipper Agustín Creevy also scored two tries. He did so for London Irish who defeated Pau in France. Winger Ramiro Moyano was a try-scorer for Edinburgh. The Scottish side were upset winners against Saracens. Emiliano Boffelli was named man of the match.

Santiago Cordero Top of the Top 14
Pumas speedster Santiago Cordero was named as the best player in the Top 14 for the month of November. He ran in a hat-trick for Bordeaux in the team’s impressive away win over Racing 92 in Paris. He also featured in Bordeaux’s notable win against Toulouse. The player has sent a message to Mario Ledesma that he merits a permanent starting spot in the team. Cordero was also excellent for his former team, the Exeter Chiefs.

 

UNDER

Cayman Islands may play less against Mexico
Saturday’s test match was a one-sided contest. The Cayman Islands’ early penalty gave them the lead for a brief period before Las Serpientes scored their first of six tries. Mexico won by a margin of 26 points. This was a big improvement in comparison to the prior fixture between the teams. With 2022 likely to be closer to normal for test match rugby in the Americas, Mexico are a team that may well have a busy schedule. Matches against Caribbean opponents such as Guyana and the Cayman Islands could become less frequent with moves afoot to play further south.

2021 ends with no matches for Colombia Men
Professional rugby was born in Colombia this year; Los Cafeteros Pro played in the Súper Liga Americana de Rugby (SLAR). The team had a much higher representation of Colombian players than the Olímpia Lions did Paraguayans. Colombia was set to face Chile in the RWC 2023 qualifiers after SLAR but the match was called-off. No further fixtures took place which sees Los Tucanes going the length of the year without a test match.

Brett Thompson calls it a day
Brett Thompson announced his retirement from rugby this past weekend. The Arizonan has called it a day at the age of 31. Thompson made his national team debut with the Eagles Sevens at the HSBC Sydney Sevens in 2012 and also earned his first cap in 15s against rival-Canada in June of 2014. He played in three Rugby World Cups across sevens (2013, 2018) and fifteens (2015).

Quesada’s Stade Français flop in Western Ireland
Stade Français had had a season of highs and lows. The French club is off the pace in the Top 14 and did not start their Champions Cup campaign well. Gonzalo Quesada’s team were hammered by Connacht this past weekend. The 36-9 loss is a strong indication that the team will need to focus on the Top 14 as the Champions Cup is unlikely to be a competition that the team can go far in. Pumas Marcos Kremer and Nicolás Sánchez both started against Connacht.