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Gonzalo Bertranou has secured his playing future in Wales. The Argentine scrum-half has extended his contract with the Dragons. His new deal will see him playing for the Welsh professional team based in Newport until June 2022.
Bertranou joined the Dragons from Los Jaguares in February. The move was his first professional contract outside of Argentina. He is a product of Los Tordos rugby in Mendoza. He captained Cuyo in the Argentine Provincial Championship.
His pathway led him to the top where he played Super Rugby and test rugby. Before either eventuated, Bertranou played for the Argentina XV. He captained the team in the 2015 Nations Cup. He made his test debut that same year against Paraguay.
He made his RWC debut four years later. He was a try scorer in the win over the USA. Then, in 2020, Bertranou featured in all four of Argentina’s Tri Nations matches in 2020. He was a replacement for Tomás Cubelli in the history-making win over New Zealand in Sydney. He started in the first of two draws against Australia and was a replacement in Los Pumas’ two other matches.
Two Argentine players from the 2020 Tri Nations will play in Wales next season. Bertranou will play for the Dragons in East Wales while Tomás Lezana will play for the Scarlets in West Wales. Prior to featuring in the win over New Zealand, both men played at RWC 2019 and both also played Super Rugby.
Bertranou is expected to play for Argentina against Wales in July. Los Pumas will tour Europe with two test matches confirmed for the Welsh capital. Due to where he already plays his rugby, he will not be required to quarantine.
The 27-year-old has has 29 caps for his country. Gonzalo Bertranou is a second generation Puma. His father, Miguel Bertranou earned 14 caps for Argentina from 1988-1993. He was a flanker.
