Americas Rugby News Rugby news from across the Americas!
Major League Rugby (MLR) newcomers the Miami Sharks continue their player recruitment. The latest on his way to southern Florida is Reinaldo Piussi. The 24-year-old is the fourth Uruguayan to sign for Miami. All four featured at Rugby World Cup 2023.
Piussi is a product of Carrasco Polo Club in Montevideo. He moved to France to join Oyonnax Espoirs whom he featured for from 2018-2020. He subsequently returned to his native Uruguay to enter the Uruguayan High Performance system.
He featured in Super Rugby Americas for Peñarol and made his test debut for his country in 2022. Piussi’s first cap was against Tonga in the November Internationals. He presently has six test caps for Uruguay.
Piussi was in the thick of the action for Los Teros at Rugby World Cup 2023. He was a replacement in Uruguay’s first game which was against France in Lille. He did not play against Italy but returned to be a replacement against Namibia in Lyon in Los Teros’ third match.
The 24-year-old joins fellow World Cup Uruguayans Manuel Ardao, Felipe Etcheverry and Tomás Inciarte at the Miami Sharks. The team has also signed Chilean Santiago Videla, Puma Tomás Cubelli, Argentine Tomás Casares and USA-capped Argentine Benjamín Bonasso.
The Miami Sharks will be looking to use Piussi’s big frame to command the scrums. Piussi is 1.92 m tall (6 ft 4 in) and weighs 140 kg (309 lb). His time at the Oyonnax academy coincided with him playing for Uruguayan u20’s.
Piussi’s departure from Uruguay for the MLR marks a continuation in the ongoing Peñarol Player Exodus. In addition to the four Teros to Miami, Ignacio Dotti will join hooker Facundo Gattas at Old Glory DC. Second-rower Felipe Aliaga was to join the recently defunct New York.
Guillermo Pujadas and Ignacio Péculo are Chicago bound. As such, the Chicago Hounds join Old Glory DC in having an Uruguayan hooker and an Uruguayan tight head prop for MLR 2024. These players all appeared at the World Cup.
Italy has also recruited a World Cup Teros front-rower. Tight head prop Diego Arbelo joined Colorno where he is now playing his rugby. Arbelo, Péculo and Piussi were Uruguay’s tight head props in France 2023. All have now moved abroad from Peñarol. The three hookers also now also play their rugby abroad. They are Gattas, Pujadas and Germán Kessler who plays for Charente in France’s Pro D2.
