Up and Under

Up and Under is an Americas Rugby News exclusive. It identifies the best and the worst involving the Americas from the past seven days.

 

UP

Uruguay Claim the Maximum over Namibia
Uruguay secured a bonus point win over a defiant Namibia in Lyon. Uruguay’s 36-26 win was by five tries to two. Baltazar Amaya scored twice while Germán Kessler, Santiago Arata, and Bautista Basso all all touched down. The match itself was very entertaining; a superb advertisement for the global game.

Argentina Move Into Second in Pool D With Win Over Chile
Argentina claimed a bonus point win over Chile in Nantes on Saturday. The contest marked the first-ever Rugby World Cup fixture between two South American countries. Los Pumas scored eight tries to one in completing a 59-5 victory. Los Pumas face Japan this coming Sunday with the winner advancing to the Quarter Finals.

Pablo Lemoine to Coach Chile for Four More Years
The coaching future of Chile is secure; Pablo Lemoine will remain on as Head Coach of Los Cóndores for four more years. In his press conference post match, Lemoine confirmed that he is not going anywhere; he will coach Chile through until the end of 2027. Chile now begin preparations for qualifiers for RWC 2027, doing so with professional players and the sport on an all-time high at home.

Baltazar Amaya and Felipe Berchesi Set World Cup Records for Uruguay
Two Uruguayan backs did more than just win against Namibia in Lyon. Baltazar Amaya and Felipe Berchesi set records. Amaya scored two tries in the match to take his World Cup try total to three. Berchesi landed extended his own record as Uruguay’s all-time leading point scorer in Rugby World Cups and for Uruguay overall.

Nicolás Sánchez Reaches 100
Nicolás Sánchez won his 100th test cap for Los Pumas on Saturday against Chile. Sánchez is the second Puma to reach the mark; he joined Agustín Creevy. Sánchez is the 737th player capped by Los Pumas. In addition to becoming the second player to reach 100 caps, Sánchez is also the leading point scorer with 886 points.

José Ignacio Larenas becomes first player to 50 caps for Chile
José Ignacio Larenas Hitschfeld became the first-ever player to earn 50 test caps for Chile. He reached the mark of 50 caps two weeks after his 34th birthday. It took him twelve years of international duty for Chile to reach the mark. This is an indication of the comparative lack of rugby played by Chile compared to most teams competing at the World Cup.

Houston add South African Beef
Houston’s South African contingent has a pair of big additions for the 2024 season. Johan Momsen and Justin Basson have been acquired from Los Angeles in exchange for salary cap considerations. The two have been among the best lock partnerships in MLR for the past couple seasons.

 

UNDER

Eagles overpowered by Wales in Colwyn Bay
Wales earned a first-ever test win over the USA in decisive fashion with the final score at Parc Eirias reading 38-18 to the home side. Rain fell throughout and made handling difficult, which played straight into the hands of a dominant Welsh set piece who outmuscled their guests from start to finish.

Another routine victory for England over Canada
England made it two-from-two in their series against Canada with a convincing 29-12 victory in London on Saturday. While the scoreline was not as lopsided as the week before, the Red Roses never looked in danger against a Maple Leafs side forced to play the last hour of the match with only 14 on the field.

World Cup over for Uruguay’s Eric Dosantos
Rugby World Cup 2023 has come to an early end for Eric Dosantos. The Uruguayan flanker was suspended for foul play against Namibia in Lyon on Wednesday. Dosantos received a late yellow card for a tackle which initially saw him cited and subsequently suspended. He will not be able to play for Uruguay against New Zealand this week.

World Rugby Refereeing Sin 
Argentina vs Chile was refereed by Paul Williams. The New Zealander made absolutely no attempt whatsoever to use Spanish. There are referees ready who speak Spanish: Super Rugby Americas referees. None were selected. No South American official has refereed a Tier 1 vs Tier 1 match during Bill Beaumont’s years in charge of World Rugby.

Namibia finish before Argentina play game three
Namibia had 18 days to play four matches at the World Cup. This was a week and a half less than some, including Argentina. Los Pumas played their third match of the tournament on Saturday. This was three says after Namibia’s tournament had concluded.

Chile are ‘new’ but speak up for Tier 2 
Chile’s preparation for facing Argentina came with strong words from the man in the hot seat. Pablo Lemoine hit out at World Rugby. Lemoine complained about how the sport is being run by World Rugby with Tier 2 being handled badly by the governing body.

The Italian Job
Former Puma Gonzalo Quesada takes over as Italian Head Coach after the World Cup. Italy’s performance against New Zealand this past Friday will give him a lot to think about. Italy were humiliated, losing by an unacceptable 96-17. 23 years after joining the Six Nations there is a lot to get right yet. Italy played with many foreign players including two Argentines against New Zealand.

Week Off for Benjamín Urdapilleta 
The LNR suspended Benjamín Urdapilleta for a week. The former Puma was in trouble for pushing La Rochelle coach Ronan O’Gara on the sidelines during Clermont vs La Rochelle recently. The LNR deemed the actions of Urdapilleta as being damaging to rugby’s image and slapped him with a fine of $1000 euros.