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The second of three weekends has concluded for Americas teams competing in the annual November Internationals. Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Uruguay and the USA all competed. Certain players stood out for their countries. The very best from the fixtures have been selected for the ARN Americas Team of the Week.
| NOVEMBER WEEK 2 RECAP |
38-17 
(Hong Kong, HK)
20-17
(Amsterdam, NL)
35-27
(Bucharest, RO)
20-36
(Chambéry, FR)
36-17 
(Chambéry, FR)
22-19 
(Dublin, IE)
| HONORABLE MENTIONS |
Not all six of the Americas teams had strong performances; this is reflected in the selections for the ARN – Americas Team of the Week for Week 2 of November 2024. No player who took to the field for Brazil, Canada or Chile earned selected.
Brazil and Chile were both shambolic; both teams significantly underperformed compared to the prior week. Brazil’s second-half defense was appalling while Chile were handed the ultimate lesson by the Netherlands.
Canada’s performance was a different kind of defeat as the Oaks were also poor. A reckless performance and poor discipline in the second half nearly gave the game away to a committed but ultimately outmatched Maple Leafs team.
There were stand-out players who represented Argentina, Uruguay and the USA. Before identifying them, however, there was also a strong performances by Argentines: scrum-half Tani Bay for Spain against Fiji and by center Juan Ignacio Brex for Italy against Georgia.
Joaquín Oviedo was the leading top carrier in the Ireland vs Argentina match with 19. Pedro Rubiolo made the most tackles with 19 and Juan Martín González completed a staggering 7 dominant tackles. Other forwards to shine bright were front-rowers Joel Sclavi and captain Julián Montoya.
González and Oviedo were joined by neighbors from Uruguay as impressing. Santiago Civetta made 13 carries, Lucas Bianchi completed 2 dominant tackles and Manuel Diana made 2 line breaks in addition to scoring a try. Diana misses out, however, as he conceded two turnovers. Paddy Ryan narrowly misses out for the USA. He made 15 carries. Cory Daniel was also a close call; he made 4 dominant tackles against Tonga.
Tomás Albornoz scored 14 points for Argentina while AJ MacGinty scored 16 for the USA. The Pumas gets the nod due to his organizational play. Ruben de Haas made two line breaks but conceded a turnover. Santiago Álvarez lifted his game well having a key try assist against Japan.
| ARN – AMERICAS TEAM OF THE WEEK – NOVEMBER 2024 WEEK 2 |
1 Jack Iscaro
2 Julián Montoya
3 Joel Sclavi
4 Manuel Leindekar
5 Pedro Rubiolo
6 Vili Helu
7 Juan Martín Gonzalez
8 Joaquín Oviedo
9 Santiago Álvarez
10 Tomás Albornoz
11 Bautista Delguy
12 Matías Moroni
13 Dom Besag
14 Bautista Basso
15 Juan Cruz Mallía
