Pumas
Argentina coach Santiago Phelan has had to change his side, initially discarding fullback Lucas Amorosino as the main culprit in his team’s loss to South Africa last week. With the injury to Juan Martin Hernandez though the Pumas side has not been finalised.
Puma flyhalf Juan Martín Hernández will miss the game against South Africa next Saturday in Mendoza. He suffered a five-millimetre groin tear during today’s training session, the Argentine Rugby Union announced.
Just days after the Lions Super Rugby franchise was ejected from the 2013 Super Rugby competition, the Golden Lions Rugby Union were dealt another crippling blow as they will have to pay millions of Rands in outstanding franchise fees to their partners in the Lions franchise, the Leopards and Pumas Rugby Unions.
Media reports are quick to plug that the Springboks have never lost to the Pumas.
However I can still remember the day in 1982 when Hugo Porta’s South American team, the Jaguars, gave the Springboks a hiding 21-12 with Porta scoring all his team’s points by running in a try, kicking a drop goal, and slotting a few penalties and a conversion.
For my 2 cents worth, I thought this was a good game from South Africa without it being a commanding one.
Only the 4th match into the Heyneke Meyer era, and after a very long and hard Super Rugby season, the number of injuries, the tiredness of the Sharks players in the Springboks and the short preparation time, these are all contributing factors that will always make the early games in The Rugby Championships seem a bit loose.
This was also very evident in the Australian Wallabies vs New Zealand All blacks match where a number of balls were spilled, knock-on’s, errors, etc was the prevailing trend.
This will improve, and I expect to see a much better performance in the next set of matches.
I have penned my feelings, lets open the debate and have your reactions to the match.
Springboks (20) 27 / 6 (6) Pumas (Final Score)
The South African Springboks and Argentinian Pumas did battle in The Rugby Championship Newlands, Cape Town at 17:05 SA Time.
This was the live match discussion Article.
The match was broadcast LIVE on SuperSport 1, SHD & M-Net on TV in SA.
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Prop Rodrigo Roncero will start for Argentina in the Pumas’ four-nations Rugby Championship opener against South Africa in Cape Town.
Argentina coach Santiago Phelan has showed his hand when he named a 26-man squad that will travel to South Africa next week for the opening round of the inaugural Rugby Championship.
The Pumas face the Springboks at Newlands on August 18, as they joined the SANZAR giants of South Africa, New Zealand and Australia in the Southern Hemisphere showpiece.
Argentina’s preparations for the Rugby Championship took a step backwards after losing 25-21 to Stade Français at Velez Sarsfield Stadium in Buenos Aires on Saturday.
Cape Town – Quickly freshening up the significant Sharks contingent in his Springbok squad is going to be a key, fairly formidable task for coach Heyneke Meyer ahead of the home-and-away Castle Rugby Championship Tests against Argentina.
The Lions may be fighting a survival battle on several fronts, but they remain firm in their resolve to retain their Super Rugby status.
DHL Western Province or the Ford Pumas will be making history on Saturday when one of them qualifies for the Vodacom Cup final in a week’s time.
1 st Semi-Final
GWK Griquas (15) 30 / (5) 17 Blue Bulls (Final Score)
The Pumas this year become the fourth team in what used to be the Tri Nations. Michael Burgess visited Argentina and found nervous rugby people who know they face difficult times but believe they will do better than Italy entering the Six Nations.
The Lions have given the Pumas duo of Doppies le Roux and Marius Coetzer a chance to book a place in the Lions Super Rugby squad after they were added to the Lions wider Super Rugby group.
Half a dozen players from the Soweto Rugby Club (SRC) were allegedly injured in an attack during a match on Saturday night, according to media reports.
The players were allegedly attacked by members of the opposition team, the Edenvale Panthers, as well as spectators towards the end of their President’s League game.
As a Lions supporter the Rugby fare during the playoff stages of competitions can become a bit dreary unless you fancy watching the teams you’ve booed all season.
After all, it’s been a while since the team from Johannesburg had a sucessful play off game.
Personally, I don’t normally watch a great deal of Rugby when the Lions are having a weekend off, but this week I made an exception, and what a treat it was.