Lucas Mensa one of Pumas call-ups for Rugby Championship

In-form center Lucas Mensa has been called up to the Pumas squad for the start of the Rugby Championship. The 26-year-old impressed in recent matches against Georgia and Portugal. Tighthead prop Santiago Medrano and eightman Joaquín Oviedo are the other two players from the Argentina XV team added to Michael Cheika’s 34-man senior roster.

Medrano provides extra front row cover while Oviedo and Mensa take the spots of Guido Petti and Bautista Delguy, both of whom have been rested for the initial stage of the tournament. Marcos Kremer will join the three specialists as a second row option in the absence of Petti, while Matías Moroni and Lucio Cinti can both play center or wing.

Tomás Cubelli and Benjamín Urdapilleta return to the squad after missing the series against Scotland with injury. Felipe Ezcurra, Tomás Albornoz, and Domingo Miotti miss out as a result. Uncapped scrumhalf Eliseo Morales has been invited to train with the squad after impressing with Cafeteros Pro in SLAR and more recently the Argentina XV.

Los Pumas will open their Rugby Championship account at home with two tests against Australia on August 6 in Mendoza and August 13 in San Juan. They will then depart for New Zealand to play the All Blacks in Christchurch on August 27, and in Hamilton on September 3. The Springboks will travel to Buenos Aires on September 17, with the return match in Durban on September 24.

PROP
Thomas Gallo (Benetton, IT) 5 caps
Francisco Gómez Kodela (Lyon, FR) 24 caps
Santiago Medrano (Worcester Warriors, UK) 31 caps
Joël Sclavi (La Rochelle, FR) 3 caps
Nahuel Tetaz Chaparro (Benetton, IT) 70 caps
Mayco Vivas (Jaguares XV) 14 caps

HOOKER
Agustín Creevy (London Irish, UK) 92 caps
Julián Montoya (capt., Leicester Tigers, UK) 77 caps
Ignacio Ruiz (Jaguares XV) 1 cap

SECOND ROW
Matías Alemanno (Gloucester, UK) 75 caps
Marcos Kremer (Stade Français, FR) 47 caps
Tomás Lavanini (Clermont Auvergne, FR) 69 caps
Lucas Paulos (Brive, FR) 7 caps

BACK ROW
Rodrigo Bruni (Brive, FR) 15 caps
Juan Martín González (London Irish, UK) 11 caps
Santiago Grondona (Exeter Chiefs, UK) 7 caps
Facundo Isa (Toulon, FR) 40 caps
Pablo Matera (Crusaders, NZ) 82 caps
Joaquín Oviedo (Perpignan, FR) 1 cap

SCRUMHALF
Lautaro Bazán Vélez (Rovigo, IT) 1 cap
Gonzalo Bertranou (Dragons, UK) 41 caps
Tomás Cubelli (Biarritz, FR) 82 caps

FLYHALF
Santiago Carreras (Gloucester, UK) 22 caps
Nicolás Sánchez (Stade Français, FR) 94 caps
Benjamín Urdapilleta (Castres, FR) 16 caps

CENTER
Jerónimo de la Fuente (Perpignan, FR) 67 caps
Lucas Mensa (Mont-de-Marsan, FR) 3 caps
Matías Moroni (Leicester Tigers, UK) 60 caps
Matías Orlando (Newcastle Falcons, UK) 50 caps

OUTSIDE BACKS
Emiliano Boffelli (Edinburgh, UK) 41 caps
Lucio Cinti (London Irish, UK) 8 caps
Santiago Cordero (Bordeaux Bègles, FR) 46 caps
Juan Imhoff (Racing 92, FR) 37 caps
Juan Cruz Mallía (Toulouse, FR) 15 caps