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In a surprising turn of events Tomás Lezana has rejoined the Argentine roster and may face Ireland. Los Pumas are to complete their three-match European tour in Dublin on Saturday. The match is to be the first between the countries since the Rugby World Cup 2015 Quarter Final.
Lesson started the tour’s opening match against England. He did so playing no 8. He then departed to return home to Santiago del Estero, effectively ending his involvement in the tour. Veteran Juan Manuel Leguizamón replaced Lezana against Italy this past Saturday.
At the time of his departure, Lezana was deemed to have played his final match for the year. Now, though, he is in contention to take-on Ireland. In addition to Lezana and Leguizamón the roster also contains Benjamín Macome, Leonardo Senatore and the uncapped Rodrigo Bruni as no 8 options.
The selection of Lezana at no 8 is as a secondary position. Naturally a flanker, Lezana has been used out of position with Daniel Hourcade seeking greater pace from the base of the scrum. At flanker Pablo Matera and Marcos Kremer have started both tests thus far in Europe. The roster also contains Javier Ortega Desio.
The return of Lezana sees Hourcade again having complete access to his roster’s forwards. Standing in the way of the squad being 100% fit is Juan Martín Hernández. The veteran play-maker is expected to be ruled out of facing Ireland.
