Argentina Names Final Squad for November Rugby Tests in Britain

The Argentina Rugby Union has announced the final 32-man squad for their upcoming three-test series in Britain, set to take place this month. Key players such as first-choice halfbacks Tomas Albornoz and Gonzalo Garcia are sidelined due to injuries, alongside several others who are feeling the effects of a demanding Rugby Championship campaign.

The list of absentees includes lock forwards Franco Molina and Pedro Rubiolo, prop Joel Sclavi, flanker Benjamin Grondona, and centre Lucio Cinti. In contrast, the squad sees the return of second-row player Matias Alemanno, who last represented the Pumas in November 2022 against Italy, and Efrain Elias, who was called up earlier this year but has not yet played in any tests.

In a positive development, loosehead prop Thomas Gallo has recovered from his injury and rejoins the squad, along with tighthead Pedro Delgado and flanker Bautista Pedemonte. Scrumhalf Gonzalo Bertranou and centre Matias Moroni also earned their places back after missing out during the Rugby Championship, where Argentina finished at the bottom of the table.

The squad selections follow a productive training camp held in England last week. Coach Felipe Contepomi expressed satisfaction with the camp, stating, “We had a very good camp, it’s always great to be able to get together again. It helped us to start preparing for the first match against Wales and to refresh and review what happened in the Rugby Championship.”

Argentina’s challenging November tour begins with a match against Wales in Cardiff on November 5, 2023. They will then face Scotland at Murrayfield on November 16 and conclude their series against England at Twickenham on November 25. Contepomi emphasized the significance of this tour, highlighting, “The November tour presents a huge challenge, which we are really looking forward to because it’s an opportunity to play in three iconic, packed stadiums against three historic rivals.”

The full squad includes:

Backs: Gonzalo Bertranou, Mateo Carreras, Santiago Carreras, Santiago Chocobares, Simon Benitez Cruz, Bautista Delguy, Benjamin Elizalde, Rodrigo Isgro, Juan Cruz Mallia, Ignacio Mendy, Matias Moroni, Agustin Moyano, Justo Piccardo, Geronimo Prisciantelli, Nicolas Roger.

Forwards: Matias Alemanno, Pedro Delgado, Efrain Elias, Thomas Gallo, Juan Martin Gonzalez, Santiago Grondona, Marcos Kremer, Francisco Coria Marchetti, Pablo Matera, Julian Montoya, Joaquin Oviedo, Bautista Pedemonte, Guido Petti, Tomas Rapetti, Ignacio Ruiz, Mayco Vivas, Boris Wenger.

As the Pumas prepare for this important series, fans will be eager to see how the team adapts and performs against formidable opponents in their quest for success on the international stage.