Argentina have sent a powerful squad with five members of the Rugby Championship roster present, including three who took part in the win against Australia. While many remain uncapped at the senior level, they are nearly all recent graduates of the national u20 program and by and large represent the best prospects in Argentinean rugby. Of last year’s victorious side 11 return, bolstered by fringe Pumas hoping to edge their way into World Cup contention under the watchful eye of coaches Bernardo Urdaneta and Pablo Gómez Cora.
Former Northampton and Gloucester hooker Matías Cortese has revived his career after some years in the wilderness, starting both tests against Ireland in June and now playing second fiddle to Pumas captain Agustín Creevy. Expect him to be a prominent figure, if not as captain than certainly as pack leader. Beside him Lucas Noguera Paz and Matías Diaz, the latter fresh off a Super Rugby season with the Highlanders, will look to cement their place in the senior squad for the November internationals.
Big second row Matías Alemanno took his chance on the Gold Coast and looks to have hurtled veteran Manuel Carizza in the pecking order. He will pack down on the tighthead side and should prove one of the dominant set piece operators in the tournament. Lanky Juan Cruz Guillemain has arrived from Paris to try and impress the selectors, and will have competition from youngster Guido Petti, not the biggest lock around but very mobile.
Flankers Rodrigo Báez and Javier Ortega Desio stood out in Saturday’s famous victory, both asked to fill in for more illustrious names and coming through in spades. Highly rated Facundo Isa is another loose forward worth watching having spent time as a medical joker with Heinken Cup champions Toulon last season. There isn’t really a powerhouse ball runner among them but all are versatile with good linking skills.
Two players with big futures ahead of them are halfbacks Felipe Ezcurra and Patricio Fernández. Both are two-time participants in the Junior World Cup, with Ezcurra captaining in 2013 and Fernández in 2014. England might come a few months too soon for the pair, but a lot can happen between now and then. This represents the next step in their rapid rise to international stardom.
Not to be overlooked is Brian Ormson, another two-time u20 star and captain of the 2011 side. Comfortable at flyhalf or inside centre, he’s likely to feature in the midfield along with Juan Ignacio Brex, a powerful runner who impressed in last year’s tournament. Facundo Barrea and Dan Isaack are proven finishers out wide, while classy footballer Román Miralles has been in the national program for the best part of a decade.
On the whole it’s a stronger squad than last year’s version, which doesn’t bode well for everyone else. Most of the side will have played together at some point, and as a group they have been training off and on for a few weeks now. There doesn’t appear to be an obvious weakness in the side outside of a lack of senior experience. With the class present, that shouldn’t be an issue. Los Jaguares have yet to lose in the ARC and probably won’t this year. Expect them to sweep all before them, and maybe set some points records along the way.
FIXTURES:
Saturday, October 11 – 14:30 PST – vs USA Select XV
Wednesday, October 15 – 18:00 PST – vs Uruguay ‘A’
Sunday, October 19 – 16:30 PST – vs Canada ‘A’
