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

Argentina the Champions of Hamilton Sevens
Los Pumas 7’s started 2023 with a bang. The Argentines are the champions of the Hamilton Sevens tournament in New Zealand. Los Pumas defeated New Zealand 14-12 in the final for glory. Getting there was impressive. Argentina defeated the USA 24-14 in the Semi Finals and Fiji 19-10 in the Quarter Finals. This came after finishing second in Pool D. Argentina were beaten 17-14 by South Africa and record 20-5 and 29-14 wins over Spain and Canada.

USA Claim Silver and Bronze
The Women’s Eagles advanced their claim for automatic Olympic qualification with a silver finish at the Hamilton Sevens. The Women’s Eagles were beaten by champions New Zealand in the Final. It was also a positive showing from the Men’s Eagles who wrapped up the Bronze with a win over France.

Chile on track for World Cup as Selknam prepare for Super Rugby Americas
2023 will be historic for rugby. The year will see Chile competing on the grandest stage of them all for the first time. Los Cóndores will debut at the Rugby World Cup against Japan in Toulouse on September 10. They also face Samoa, England and Argentina. The first three matches have never happened before while Chile vs Argentina will be the first South American battle in Rugby World Cup history. Chile’s pathway to qualifying for the World Cup was tied in heavily to Selknam. The Chilean professional team will be all homegrown for Super Rugby Americas 2023.

Peñarol give Uruguay World Cup Boost
Peñarol’s roster for Super Rugby Americas 2023 is entirely Uruguayan and every player is homegrown. This differs to prior seasons; Peñarol had Argentines in the Súper Liga Americana de Rugby (SLAR) and players from countries including Colombia, Portugal and South Africa in SLAR 2020. Key returnees are Diego Arbelo, Felipe Aliaga, and Juan Manuel Tafernaberry from injuries and Juan Manuel Alonso, Juan Manuel Rodríguez, Ignacio Dotti and Juan Zuccarino from abroad.

New Talent Coming Through for Uruguay
There have been changes in Los Teros since Rugby World Cup 2019. The arrival of a professional team has matured the player roster. The gap from the club system to the test arena has been drastically reduced. Super Rugby 2023 will ensure that the Rugby World Cup 2023 roster is Uruguay’s best prepared group of players in history. While this is unfolding Uruguay has handed out test caps to rookies across all positions since RWC 2019. There is more depth now than previously.

Chicago Hounds Continue Impressive Recruitment
Michael Baska will return to Major League Rugby after signing on with the expansion Chicago Hounds. The 28-year-old scrumhalf spent the past 18 months in the French Pro D2 with Rouen Normadie, but was granted an early release from his contract to move stateside. USA Falcons prop Mika Felix also signed this past week as did Malaysian star Duke Krishnan.

Spanish Clubes snap up Canadians
Three Canadian internationals have signed on with clubs in Spain. Magali Harvey and Caroline Crossley have joined Olimpico Pozuelo in Madrid, with Sabrina Poulin moving to Eibar Rugby Taldea in the Basque country. The trio will compete in Spain’s elite women’s division, the Liga Iberdrola. Harvey is the highest profile addition. The 32-year-old was named IRB Women’s Player of the Year in 2014 after a starring performance at that year’s World Cup.

Pumas Impress Around the World
There were some notable performances by Pumas this past weekend. Sebastián Cancelliere, Matías Orlando, Mateo Carreras, Juan Martín González, Agustín Creevy, Juan Cruz Mallía and Bautista Delguy all scored tries in the European Champions / Challenge Cup. Pablo Matera touched down for Honda Heat against the Shimizu Blue Sharks while Nicolás Sánchez shoed that  he wants to play in another World Cup as he put on a master-class for Brive who upset Cardiff in Wales. Also of note is that uncapped prop Francisco Coria made his first start for Brive.

 

UNDER

Pumas Scrum Half Concerns
The United Rugby Championship (URC) season is over for Gonzalo Bertranou. The Puma has undergone surgery that has ended has season for the Dragons. His focus is now on returning to the field wearing the colors of Los Pumas. Fellow URC player Gonzalo García is out for the season knee following surgery,  Lautaro Bazán Vélez is out with a wrist injury and Tomás Cubelli has just returned to Biarritz for the second half of the Pro D2 season.

Canadians Off the Pace in Hamilton
Brazil finished above Canada for the first time this season. Thalia Costa’s hat trick was a highlight in a blowout win over invitational side Papua New Guinea. Singles from Costa and Gabriela Lima tied the game against Spain, but a last-gasp try from Bruna Elias saw the 9th place Final slip away from As Yaras. The Canadians were shut out by Spain in their first match of the day. They took out their frustrations on Papua New Guinea, with Bianca Farella notching a hat-trick, but will need to find greater inspiration to avoid a similar finish in Sydney.

El Cachorro Hurt Again
Nicolás Sánchez is in fine form. His mid-season transfer for Stade Français to Brive has seen him playing regular and well. It has also seen him falling to injury. He was again unable to compete the match this past weekend. Having played very well for Brive, Sánchez let the field after a second-half knock. This follows a recent incident against Lyon.

Change Player Eligibility Laws to help who or what exactly?
The changes to player eligibility laws were pushed by former Samoan player Dan Leo as a means of leveling the field. He argued that the laws are not fair for Tier 2 teams. His wish was granted and Samoa and Tonga have been big winners. So too have Scotland with two RWC 2019 players having jumped. Flanker Jack Dempsey played for Australia and winger Ruaridh McConnochie played for England at RWC 2019. It has seen rewards for the less productive; indeed, 95% of Scotland’s foreign-born players on their current roster were trained and produced by rivals.

Potential Future Canada and USA now playing for Scotland
There are North American connections to Scotland. Hooker Ewan Ashman was born in Canada but trained in England. His father is Scottish. Fullback Rufus McLean misses out through suspension and may never play again for Scotland or in Scotland. He was born in the USA and is also Scotland qualified via a parent. The aforementioned eligibility changes mean both men could play for a second test team. World Rugby are running the game like a thrift store.

ATL trade identity for merchandise
Whatever one thinks of the new logo ‘unveiled’ by Rugby ATL this past week, the process has been a masterclass in how not to re-brand. Instead of building on an established identity – the Ratlers – the new team ownership has gone in a completely different direction, with a clear emphasis on selling schwag and seemingly no input from their fanbase. To say it has been a PR disaster is an understatement. Is it too late to hit the ‘rewind’ button in Atlanta?