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

All Roads Lead to Denver
Infinity Park will serve as the venue for the second and deciding match of the Americas 2 World Cup Qualifying series between the USA and Chile. The match will be played on Saturday, July 16, with kickoff set for 1pm local time (noon Pacific, 2pm Central, 3pm Eastern). Chile will host the first match of the series on Saturday, July 9, at a venue to be confirmed. The winner of the two-game series on aggregate will advance directly to Rugby World Cup 2023 as Americas 2 while the loser will be designated Americas 3 and compete in November’s last-chance Repechage tournament.

Big Names Join Cheika
Michael Cheika will have the support of Argentine captain’s from past Rugby World Cups and Rugby Championships. His coaching regime will consist of World Rugby Hall of Famer Felipe Contepomi, former multi-time European Champions Cup winner with Toulon Juan Martín Fernández Lobbe and former Pumas front-rower Andrés Bordoy.

AG’s get their swagger back
The Austin Gilgronis returned to impressive form with a resounding 43-5 win over the Houston SaberCats at Bold Stadium on Sunday. It was a ruthless display from the home side, whose two-game losing streak looks long forgotten. The bonus point win gives them the top spot in the Western Conference at the midpoint of the season.

San Diego Legion deliver on the road against Utah
A dominant performance from San Diego saw them exit Zions Bank Stadium with a 40-25 win over the Utah Warriors on Friday night. Joe Pietersen contributed 20 points with the boot to lead the way as the Legion pushed into top spot in the Western Conference.

New England hold firm on top
The New England Free Jacks held on for a 33-29 win over NOLA Gold at Veterans Memorial Stadium on Saturday. A furious second half comeback from the visitors made for tense moments, but the final result sees the home side securing the 1st overall position at the midpoint of the Major League Rugby season.

Atlanta spoil Toronto Arrows homecoming
Rugby ATL spoiled Toronto’s homecoming party with a 20-14 road win at York Lions Stadium on Saturday. The visitors proved too strong up front with the Arrows pack struggling to withstand the pressure at the scrum and maul, and the injury-depleted backline was unable to make an impact.

Glory for New York in thrilling win over DC
Rugby New York got the bonus point win they wanted against Old Glory DC, but it was far from easy with the final score reading 35-31 at JFK Stadium on Sunday afternoon. Each team managed five tries with two missed conversions the only difference after 80 minutes. Incoming coach Nate Osborne was in attendance and will have taken many positives from DC’s effort.

Selknam win again despite heavy rotation
Selknam landed a final minute penalty to snatch victory from Los Cafeteros Pro in Ciudad del Este on Saturday. The Colombian SLAR franchise put on an impressive performance; in fact, they were very close to winning the match. Minutes before fullback Francisco Urroz landed the penalty to put Selknam ahead 20-19 in the 80th minute. Julián Hernández missed a difficult attempt in overtime.

Olímpia Lions move up the standings with home win
The Olímpia Lions put on a strong showing at home against Os Cobras on Saturday. The Paraguayan SLAR franchise celebrated a 42-17 victory at Ciudad del Este in a round four SLAR match on Saturday evening. Julián Quetglas started with two tries for the Olímpia Lions. The win means the Olímpia Lions are now above Los Jaguares XV.

Peñarol on an all-time high
SLAR 2022 is wide open. Peñarol made history on Saturday by defeating Los Jaguares XV for the first time. Peñarol were deserved 27-20 winners. The Uruguayans won by scoring three tries while conceding two. They had the better of play in general and excelled in the lineout, maul and defensively. It is excellent news ahead of Peñarol having home advantage for all of the second half of SLAR 2022.

 

UNDER

Injuries to big name Americas players
As the Northern Hemisphere spring unfolds it is time to look towards the summer and the July Internationals. There are players presently out of action who would be expected to play if fit. Marcos Kremer is out for two months though he should recover in time. Two MLR situations from the weekend involve USA scrumhalf Nate Augspurger who suffered a knee injury, and Uruguay hooker Facundo Gattas whose first start with Old Glory was limited to just 19 minutes due to an ankle problem.

Andrew Douglas Gone from Old Glory DC
Andrew Douglas is no longer the Head Coach of Old Glory DC. The struggling club has confirmed that a change has been made with immediate effect. An interim coaching structure will be confirmed for the remainder of the season, with the club instituting a ‘world-wide search’ for a long-term successor. Hailing from New Zealand, Douglas has been at the helm of Old Glory since their inaugural exhibition campaign in 2019.

Injury crisis for Dallas
The Dallas Jackals have been hit with an injury crisis and Matt Frings is suspended. Henry Trinder’s season is over with surgery scheduled to repair wrist and knee damage, while midfield partner Ned Hodson will miss at least six weeks with his own knee problem. The team did get some good news with the return of scrumhalf Carlo de Nysschen against LA.

Cobras off the pace in SLAR
Brazil’s professional rugby team, Os Cobras are the only winless side in SLAR 2022. After four rounds Os Cobras have one losing bonus point to their name. The three other defeats were all by notable margins. Hard work lies ahead as Los Jaguares XV, Peñarol and Selknam are the next three opponents for Os Cobras.

Double Trouble for Jaguares XV
Los Jaguares XV were undefeated in SLAR 2020, SLAR 2021, and in the 2019 Currie Cup First Division. In short, the Argentine side had never lost a match prior to losing against Selknam in March 2022. Yet, the team lost again this past Saturday as a spirited Peñarol completed a well-deserved victory. With it Los Jaguares XV fall to 4th in the SLAR 2022 standings, and the previously unbeatable suddenly look very mortal.

Discipline hurting Jaguares
It’s not the only culprit, but discipline is certainly a cause for concern. Two Jaguares players were sin-binned on Saturday. This brought the SLAR 2022 season total up to six yellow cards from just four matches in the season thus far. By way of comparison there were a total of four yellow cards and one red card conceded by Los Jaguares XV in SLAR 2021.

Nicolás Sánchez slammed in rare Stade Français start
Argentina’s fly half crisis in 2021 saw Nicolás Sánchez and Domingo Miotti dropped. Miotti played fullback this past weekend for the Glasgow Warriors while Sánchez had a rare start for Stade Français against Racing 92. Rugby Rama noted his performance as a Flop. Selection for Los Pumas in July 2022 looks unlikely at this stage for Sánchez. Whether or not Santiago Carreras will be considered a wing or a fly half in 2022 is a separate question.