Argentina take on South Africa in their Rugby Championship first round match this Saturday and they face an uphill task if they want to come out of the game with a result.
Here is how we expect Argentina to fair in this year’s tournament.
This is Los Pumas third year in the Rugby Championship and they are still chasing that elusive first win in the tournament. A solitary draw with South Africa in their opening season is about as good as it has got for the Pumas.
They come into the tournament in a period of transition with many of their long serving stalwarts stepping away from the game and leaving voids which the young players must step into.
They played some beautiful rugby over the summer in the test matches against Ireland and even though they came out on the wrong side of the result, they will have taken a lot of positives from the two tests. They blooded a lot of young players and played some positive attacking rugby and the way they threw the ball around in the opening half of the first test against Ireland was very impressive.
Will Nicolas Sanchez carry through his impressive club form?
At out-half they have a real talent in Nicolas Sanchez. The Bordeaux number 10 has been impressive for the French club over the last season and has been instrumental for them in implementing their new brand of attacking rugby.
At centre, the experienced Marcelo Bosch is a class player. The Saracens player marshalls the defence really well and similar to Matt Toomua for Australia, he adds a second option with the boot. Argentina will need to have a rock solid defence to have any chance of competing with the three other powerhouses in the competition and Bosch is key to their defensive speed.
Out wide talented young winger Manuel Montero is one of the stars of the future and has been a regular feature in the Argentine side since he graduated from the u20 squad. There is a lot of hype around this kid in Argentina and why wouldn’t there be? He is fast, strong and he has a wicked step, who can forget his excellent finish against Ireland during this year’s summer tour. Also keep an eye for the Nicolas Sanchez break in the lead up to the try.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S_TlW1N598k
Up front, they are lucky to have world-class loose-head Marcos Ayerza in the scrum. The Leicester man is a destructive scrummager and he will have no qualms about packing down across from South Africa’s tight head Jannie du Plessis on Saturday.
In the back row they have the consistently brilliant Juan Martín Fernández Lobbe. While not known originally as a natural openside, Lobbe is one of the best loose forwards in the world on his day and he will be vital if the Los Pumas are to challenge in this tournament.
One thing that could play to their advantage is the fact they do not have a gruelling super rugby season under their belts. Many of the Argentina squad ply their trade in the northern hemisphere or in the domestic league which means they have had time to rest up and be prepared for the challenge that awaits. While this is unlikely to make a difference in the opening rounds, as the tournament progresses it will leave the Argentinians fresher and less susceptible to injury.
Ones to watch:
Named at outside centre in the opening game, Juan Martín Hernandez is one player you will all know. Despite the hype surrounding the player, he hasn’t performed well with consistency since the 2007 World Cup, where he broke Irish hearts. These days he could be considered to be one of the most overrated players in world rugby. Will he find some form and consistency in this championship?
At full-back Joaquín Tucelet is one of the less known players of the Los Pumas squad, but he is a player that Argentine coach Daniel Hourcade has invested a lot of time into. He showed some flashes of brilliance against Ireland during the summer and having recently signed for Bernard Jackman’s Grenoble, there is even more reason to keep an eye on the promising fullback.
How they will do:
I can’t see Argentina challenging for honours in this year’s Rugby Championship. They will probably be aiming to get a win on the board and break that duck. They will find the going tough away to the likes of New Zealand, but if they manage to create a fortress at home, they will have a chance to sneak a win there to go with the draw they earned against South Africa two years ago.
Did you know:
That Argentine legend and former Leinster out-half Felipe Contepomi once lined out in an AIB League Division One game playing for Carlow against Shannon in 2004.
Despite the Argentine’s star quality, he couldn’t affect the result and Shannon won the game by 20-11.
Videos via RugbyChamps2012 and RugbyRiot.
