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It is going to be do or die in Santiago. Selknam and Yacare are chasing places in the Semi Finals. Their clash in the penultimate round of the season comes with the home side on 22 points and the visitors from Paraguay on 29. Selknam must win this match.
The pressure is great just as it was last weekend. On that occasion Selknam delivered a brilliant performance to defeat Los Pampas. A repeat performance ought to see Selknam in the frame for the Semi Finals at Yacare’s expense. In actuality this is not the case; Yacare were also outstanding last weekend. The Paraguayan side smashes Los Dogos in Asunción.
Selknam have named a potent team to face Yacare. Every player is a home-grown Chilean and every player is in the frame for Rugby World Cup 2023 selection. Up front Vittorio Lastra, and Esteban Inostroza join hooker Augusto Bohme. Clemente Saavedra was man-of-the-match against Los Pampas. He again joins Pablo Huete in the engine room.
There is plenty of additional power in the back-row. Alfonso Escobar and Raimundo Martínez are regular N8’s. They start as the flankers with Joaquín Milesi starting at the back of the scrum.
The power pf the pack will be complimented by the finesse of Marcelo Torrealba and Rodrigo Fernández in the halves. Fernández is one of two play-makers as Santiago Videla leads the side from fullback. Pablo Casas and Domingo Saavedra are again the mid-field combination.
Yacare were formidable in the scrum against Los Dogos. They repeat the front-row with Lucas Noguera Paz, Mariano Muntaner and Facundo Pomponio starting in Chile. Newcomer Lucas Sommer gets a start in the second-row. He joins Paraguay’s best player of Super Rugby Americas 2023, Mariano Garcete.
The Argentine trio of Felipe Villagrán, Felipe Puertas and Juan Cruz Pérez Rachel start again as the back-row. They have impressed not only in recent weeks but throughout the season. The same applies to captain Ignacio Inchauspe who again starts at scrum-half.
Of note is that Inchauspe will be joined by a Colombian in the backs. Juan David Agudelo starts at inside center. The new-look mid-field will see Agudelo combining with Ramiro Amarilla.
For Yacare the task is simple. They face Selknam and Los Pampas in the final two rounds. If they can get points against Selknam in Chile then they are all but assured of a place in the Semi Finals. A win in Chile will guarantee it.
SELKNAM
1 Vittorio Lastra, 2 Augusto Bohme, 3 Esteban Inostroza, 4 Clemente Saavedra, 5 Pablo Huete, 6 Alfonso Escobar, 7 Raimundo Martínez, 8 Joaquín Milesi, 9 Marcelo Torrealba, 10 Rodrigo Fernández, 11 José Ignacio Larenas, 12 Pablo Casas, 13 Domingo Saavedra, 14 Cristobál Game, 15 Santiago Videla (capt.)
Replacements: 16 Diego Escobar, 17 Simón Donoso, 18 Iñaki Gurruchaga, 19 Santiago Pedrero, 20 Bruno Sáez, 21 Benjamín Videla, 22 Lukas Carvallo, 23 Ernesto Tchimino
YACARE
1 Lucas Noguera Paz, 2 Mariano Muntaner, 3 Facundo Pomponio, 4 Lucas Sommer, 5 Mariano Garcete, 6 Felipe Villagrán, 7 Felipe Puertas, 8 Juan Cruz Pérez Rachel, 9 Ignacio Inchauspe (capt.), 10 Federico Cacciabue, 11 Juan González, 12 Juan David Agudelo, 13 Ramiro Amarilla, 14 Arturo López, 15 Nicolás Picasso
Replacements: 16 Emilio Gorostiaga, 17 Julián Martín, 18 Rolando Portillo, 19 Ignacio Martínez, 20 Carlos Plate, 21 Estanislao Pregot, 22 Gianfranco Parodi, 23 Estanislao Gómez
Date: Saturday, May 20
Kick-Off: 6pm (CL); 6pm (PY)
Venue: La Pintana, Santiago (CL)
Referee: Nehuén Jauri Rivero (AR)
Assistant Referees: Gonzalo de Achával (AR) Gonzalo Ventoso (UY)
TMO: Maximiliano Miranda (AR)
HISTORIC RESULTS
Apr 01, 2023 – Yacare 21-11 Selknam (Asunción, PY)
Apr 23, 2002 – Selknam 41-19 Olímpia Lions (Montevideo, UY)
Mar 13, 2022 – Selknam 20-22 Olímpia Lions (Valparaíso, Chile)
Apr 16, 2021 – Olímpia Lions 24-21 Selknam (Montevideo, Uruguay)
Mar 16, 2021 – Selknam 29-16 Olímpia Lions (Santiago, Chile)
