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The Súper Liga Americana de Rugby (SLAR) 2022 Semi Finals have arrived. The first is a Chile vs Argentina battle as Selknam take-on the SLAR 2021 champions, Los Jaguares XV. The match has an unprecidented unique appeal to it as Selknam enter as favorites. The Chileans defeated the Argentines in both matches during the SLAR 2022 regular season.
Selknam were truly impressive during the SLAR 2022 regular season. The team won eight out of ten matches and did so player rotation. There was a rotation of the roster to enable a training camp of Chile’s elite home-based players to take place during the competition itself.
The players returned from Chile to join Selknam and see the team beat allcomers. The outcome was second place in the regular season and a Semi Final against the third palced Los Jaguares XV. The Chilean players enter the match looking to reach a historic final and also seeking valuable opportunities to prepare for the RWC 2023 qualifiers against the USA in July.
Selknam’s side is not the strongest possible line-up. Star fly half Rodrigo Fernández is notably missing. Selection decisions have seen some established names included as replacements rather than starters. Examples include front-rowers Tomás Dussaillant, and Javier Carrasco, flanker Ignacio Silva and fullback Santiago Videla.
The young Diego Escobar will be the starting hooker. He joins Salvador Lues, and Matías Dittus in the front-row. Test captain Martín Sigren returns to start at flanker. He will join fellow regular Alfonso Escobar as well as youngester Santiago Edwards in the back-row.
Benjamín Videla, has been rewarded for his impressive performance in Sunday’s win over Peñarol. He starts at scrum-half. Uruguayan Juan Zuccarino retains the fly half spot. He and Franco Molina are the two non-Chileans in the line-up.
The back-line is one that may be very close to that which wears Los Cóndores’ colors against Scotland A in Santiago. The Garafulic brothers start at inside center and on the right wing respectively. Few players have progressed as much as Matías Garafulic has from SLAR 2021 to 2022. Mr. Consistent, Domingo Saavedra will play between the brothers at outside center.
Los Jaguares XV are under pressure. Despite losing both regular season fixtures, a loss in the Semi Final would be unthinkable; a total disaster. The Argentine side can fire when they deliver. This was proven on Sunday with 84 points scored against Os Cobras.
Thirteen of the starting players that were involved in that impressive win will also start in the Semi Final. The two alterations see Mayco Vivas and Rafael Iriarte starting. Vivas joins Ignacio Ruiz and Lautaro Caro Saisi in the front-row. Iriate starts at scrum-half inside Gerónimo Prisciantelli.
Two young up-and-coming Argentines start in the second-row. Both Pedro Rubiolo and Manuel Bernstein are former Pumitas. Rubiolo played for Argentina u20’s in 2021 when the team was captained by Jerónimo Gómez Vara who starts the Semi Final at flanker.
The backs also contain former Pumitas. Gerónimo Prisciantelli was a center at u20’s level but is running the game from fly half. Juan Pablo Castro captained Argentina u20’s in 2019 at inside center but starts on the wing against Selknam while Tomás Cubilla will play inside center. The top SLAR try-scorer, Ignacio Mendy will again play right wing.
The Semi Final will mark the sixth time Selknam and Los Jaguares XV have met in SLAR. The 2020 and 2021 fixtures were won by the Argentine side while the Chileans won both 2022 regular season matches. Unlike the earlier games, this time there is a place in the SLAR Final on the line. .
TEAMS
JAGUARES XV
1 Mayco Vivas, 2 Ignacio Ruiz, 3 Lautaro Caro Saisi, 4 Pedro Rubiolo, 5 Manuel Bernstein, 6 Andrea Panzarini, 7 Jerónimo Gómez Vara, 8 Santiago Ruiz, 9 Rafael Iriarte, 10 Gerónimo Prisciantelli, 11 Juan Pablo Castro, 12 Tomás Cubilla (capt.), 13 Agustín Segura, 14 Ignacio Mendy, 15 Martín Bogado
Replacements: 16 Bautista Bernasconi, 17 Nicolás Revol Pitt, 18 Javier Coronel, 19 Eliseo Chiavassa, 20 Juan Bautista Pedemonte, 21 Mateo Albanese, 22 Federico Albrisi, 23 Tomás Suárez Folch
SELKNAM
1 Salvador Lues, 2 Diego Escobar, 3 Matías Dittus, 4 Santiago Pedrero, 5 Franco Molina, 6 Martín Sigren, 7 Santiago Edwards, 8 Alfonso Escobar, 9 Benjamín Videla, 10 Juan Zuccarino, 11 Luca Strabucchi, 12 Matías Garafulic, 13 Domingo Saavedra (capt.), 14 Nicolás Garafulic, 15 Francisco Urroz
Replacements: 16 Tomás Dussaillant, 17 Javier Carrasco, 18 Vittorio Lastra, 19 Augusto Sarmiento, 20 Ignacio Silva, 21 Marcelo Torrealba, 22 Santiago Videla, 23 Ernesto Tchimino
Date: Wednesday, May 04
Kickoff: 6:00pm (Montevideo, Buenos Aires), 5:00pm (Santiago)
Venue: Estadio Charrúa, Montevideo
Referee: Francisco González (Uruguay)
Assistant Referees: Cauã Ricardo (Brazil); Gonzalo De Achaval (Argentina)
TMO: Alejandro Longres (Uruguay)
Broadcast: ESPN America Latina, ESPN Brasil, STAR +
HISTORICAL RESULTS
2022-05-04 – Jaguares XV 10, 23 Selknam (Estadio Charrúa, Montevideo, Uruguay)
2022-04-21 – Selknam 20, Jaguares XV 10 (Estadio San Carlos de Apoquindo, Santiago, Chile)
2021-04-21 – Jaguares XV 68, Selknam 8 (Estadio Charrúa, Montevideo, Uruguay)
2021-03-25 – Selknam 65 , Jaguares XV 8 (Estadio Elías Figueroa, Valparaiso, Chile)
2020-03-14 – Selknam 16, Ceibos 32 (Estadio Nacional de Chile, Santiago, Chile)
