Up and Under

Up and Under is a weekly exclusive on Americas Rugby News. It covers the best and worst from games involving the Americas players and teams over the previous week.

UP

Golden Brazil seal spot in 2022 Rugby Sevens World Cup
Brazil won the 2021 South American Sevens. The tournament was played this past Friday and Saturday in Montevideo, Uruguay. In winning, Brazil booked their spot at the 2022 Rugby Sevens World Cup in Cape Town, South Africa. The outcome that reaffirms As Yaras as the powerhouses of the Women’s game in South America. They hammered Paraguay 57-0 to win their Semi Final while Colombia reached the final with a nerve-wracking 15-14 victory over Argentina.

History making Colombia book place in World Cup
Las Tucanes will join Brazil in Cape Town in 2022. The Colombians booked their place by downing Argentina 15-14 in a tense Semi Final. The Semi Final win set-up a final against Brazil and meant Las Tucanes and As Yaras were the top two of the 2022 South American Sevens. Brazil and Colombia will compete at the even next year. It is to take place from September 09-11, 2022.

Argentina run in five to hammer Italy
Argentina regained momentum on Saturday. The top side from the Americas were big winners over Italy at the Stadio Monigo in Treviso. The 37-16 win was the first since July and put to an end what was a seven match losing-streak. The five tries to one victory was Argentina’s largest over Italy since 2002. It is placed third on the list behind the 36-6 win in 2002 and the 38-17 win in 2001. In addition, the match was the second largest win during the Mario Ledesma tenure. The largest was 47-17 win against the USA at RWC 2019. The outcome probably means Ledesma’s contract will be extended.

Job done to end bittersweet year for Canada Men 
The painful year has ended for Canada. The year will long be remembered as the end the World Cup continuity. The failure to qualify for RWC 2023 was predicted by few but is now the obstacle to utilize to restructure moving forward. Canada’s final test match of 2021 was a 24-0 win over Belgium. Canada will next play in the 2022 July Internationals.

2022 Major League Rugby is to be bigger than ever
Major League Rugby has unveiled its schedule for the 2022 season. With all teams from 2021 returning and the Dallas Jackals joining there will be 13 teams competing across East and West divisions in the fifth year for the organization. As in 2021 the regular season will be comprised of 18 weeks though it will return to an earlier start with the opening day slated for February 5. The regular season comes to a close on June 5, with the Championship Final set to be played on June 25 or 26. For the first time there will be a third round of playoffs.

UNDER

Women’s Eagles fall short against Ireland
Ireland were 20-10 winners over the Women’s Eagles on Friday. Individual errors were largely to blame for the USA, who squandered several chances to score though a controversial moment in the second half will also be a point of discussion. The Eagles need to regather ahead of their match away to play England at Worcester next Sunday.

Red Roses rumble over Maple Leafs
England underlined their spot at the top of the world rankings with a dominant 51-12 win over Canada at The Stoop on Sunday. The Red Roses recorded seven tries in all, with the Maple Leafs falling off the pace and conceding 31 unanswered points in the second half. It will be a disappointing result for the Canadians who were still in the game at halftime. Wrapping up the calendar year is a match against Wales in Cardiff on Sunday.

Uruguay well below their best on tour
October was an excellent month for Uruguay. November sees the RWC 2023 qualified Americas 1 side 0-2 on their European tour. Los Teros were well beaten by Italy ‘A’ on Sunday. Losing 31-13 against Italy in a test match would be a respectable outcome for Uruguay but a loss against their second senior side is very much a failure. Evidence for this can be seen in how Uruguay has performed in comparable matches in the past. A strong performance will be needed to end the tour on a high in the test match against Italy this coming weekend.

Brazil start poorly and pay for it
Zimbabwe were 24-22 winners over Brazil on Sunday. Brazil had a poor start to the match; indeed, the South American failed to score in the opening half. Zimbabwe, on the other hand, scored 17 points. Such a difference made it highly demanding for Brazil to respond in the second half. Os Tupis did score three tries to one in the second half but the damage had been done in the first. The appalling start means Brazil miss out on facing RWC 1999-2019 side Namibia this coming weekend.

Canadian win tarnished by Michael Smith seeing red
A first quarter red card saw Canada playing with 14-men for over an hour on Saturday. Flanker Michael Smith was sent off for foul play. The incident occurred during a clean-out. A TMO review identified shoulder-to-head contact on Belgian lock Guillaume Mortier. Canadian captain Lucas Rumball protested but the referee explained he had no option and ordered Smith from the pitch.

Here is the red card to Canada #7 Michael Smith. Shoulder to the head of Belgium #4 Guillaume Mortier. pic.twitter.com/5L2faLJqum

— Bryan Ray (@raysrugby) November 13, 2021