The Guinness Pro 14 also reaches its midpoint this weekend, well technically at halftime of each game with 21 matches to be played by each game in the regular season. It’s a weird schedule for Round 11, the first of back-to-back derby matches with three games on Saturday, three on Tuesday, and the South African teams not to make up the game until January 13.
A match between Italian sides Benetton Treviso and Zebre comes first on Saturday. Benetton start three players from the Americas. Argentines Tomás Baravalle and Juan Ignacio Brex are at hooker and outside centre respectively, with Italo-Canadian Robert Barbieri at No 8. Zebre replacement flyhalf Serafin Bordoli is another from Argentina.
After that it’s desperately quiet for the Americas fans. Canadian winger Jeff Hassler starts for Ospreys on Boxing Day in the game against Scarlets in Llanelli and that’s it. If the Pro 14 were hoping to expand into the Americas some day soon they shouldn’t be surprised if the response they get from fans is “Who???”