Pumas with surprise scrum-half inclusion for All Blacks in Mendoza

Argentina have trimmed their roster ahead of the Rugby Championship opener. Los Pumas take-on New Zealand in Mendoza on Saturday, July 08. The roster comes with the surprise of a new name. Uncapped Ignacio Inchauspe has been included.

Inchauspe joins with neither Tomás Cubelli nor Gonzalo García is consideration for the match. Both played little this past season due to injuries. The latter is in a race against time to be fit in time for warm-up matches.

The roster sees two hookers missing out; Facundo Bosch and Santiago Socino will not travel with the team to Mendoza. Loose head props Nahuel Tetaz Chaparro and Ignacio Calles also sit out the match as will tight head props Joel Sclavi and Francisco Gómez Kodela.

Second-rower Guido Petti missed the entirety of the 2022-2023 Top 14 season for Bordeaux. He has completed his rehabilitation and is being prepared for a return against South Africa. Marcos Kremer is also unavailable following suspension. He will not return until the wam-up against Spain in Madrid.

In addition to Kremer, Facundo Isa and Joaquín Oviedo will not play against New Zealand. This leaves five players  on the roster for the back-row. They are homeboy Juan Martín González in addition to Santiago Grondona, Pedro Rubiolo , Rodrigo Bruni and the unofficial vice-captain Pablo Matera.

Top 14 centers Santiago Chocobares and Jerónimo de la Fuente will sit-out the match. The former recently played in the final. The latter had an early end to his season due to injury.

Wingers Santiago Cordero and Juan Imhoff will also miss the match. They both played in the Top 14 Semi Finals for beaten teams. Juan Cruz Mallía held down the fullback spot throughout 2022. He will sit out the Mendoza match as will the uncapped Martín Bogado. This suggests that Emiliano Boffelli will play fullback rather than wing against New Zealand.

 

ARGENTINA ROSTER 2023 – LOS PUMAS + ARGENTINA XV

LOOSE HEAD
Thomas Gallo (Benneton, IT – 13 caps)
Marco Vivas (Gloucester, UK – 17 caps)

HOOKER
Agustín Creevy (Sale Sharks, UK – 97 caps)
Julián Montoya (Leicester Tigers, UK – 85 caps)
Ignacio Ruiz (London Irish, UK – 4 caps)

TIGHT HEAD
Eduardo Bello (Newcastle Falcons, UK – 10 caps)
Santiago Medrano (Western Force, AU – 32 caps)
Lucio Sordoni (Glasgow Warriors, UK – 3 caps)

SECOND-ROW
Matías Alemanno (Gloucester, UK – 84 caps)
Tomás Lavanini (Clermont, FR – 78 caps)
Lucas Paulos (Bayonne, FR – 10 caps)

FLANKER
Juan Martín González (Unattached – 20 caps)
Santiago Grondona (Pau, FR – 10 caps)
Pedro Rubiolo (Newcastle Falcons, UK – 1 cap)

N8
Rodrigo Bruni (Bayonne, FR – 18 caps)
Pablo Matera (Honda Heat, JP – 91 caps)

SCRUM-HALF
Lautaro Bazán Vélez (Rovigo, IT – 3 caps)
Gonzalo Bertranou (Dragons, UK – 49 caps)
Ignacio Inchauspe (Yacare, PY – uncapped)

FLY HALF
Tomás Albornoz (Benetton, IT – 3 caps)
Santiago Carreras (Gloucester, UK – 31 caps)
Nicolás Sánchez (Brive, FR – 95 caps)

INSIDE CENTER
Matías Orlando (Newcastle Falcons, UK – 57 caps)

OUTSIDE CENTER
Lucio Cinti (Saracens, UK – 12 caps)
Luciano González (Los Pumas 7’s – uncapped)
Matías Moroni (Newcastle Falcons, UK – 69 caps)

BACK-THREE
Emiliano Boffelli (Edinburgh, UK – 50 caps)
Sebastián Cancelliere (Glasgow Warriors, UK – 13 caps)
Mateo Carreras (Newcastle Falcons, UK – 7 caps)
Bautista Delguy (Clermont, FR – 25 caps)
Rodrigo Isgró (Los Pumas 7’s – uncapped)