Pumas aim at maiden victory
AT BOTH ends of the spectrum the Rugby Championship has been a one-horse race in its twoyear existence.
At the top the All Blacks have won both times and have yet to lose a game, and at the bottom Argentina have finished last both years and have yet to win a game.
The Pumas managed a draw in Mendoza against the Boks in 2012 and came within minutes of beating the Wallabies at the Gold Coast the same year.
But in 2013 their performances dipped with a massive 73-13 loss to the Boks in Soweto and a 54-17 defeat to the Wallabies in Rosario.
However, South African, New Zealand and Australia Rugby (Sanzar) chief executive Greg Peters is optimistic about their future.
“We’d love Argentina to get their maiden win in the tournament this year,” Peters said. “They’ve come close a few times.
“A very big part of Sanzar’s strategy in involving an Argentinian team in the expansion of Super Rugby in 2016 is to assist the Pumas and help their improvement. Apart from winning a game, they have ticked every box.
“They get access to their best players for a couple of weeks prior to the Rugby Championship and not again until November, and it’s very piecemeal. They will continue to be competitive, but to make the real stride ahead they need inclusion in Super Rugby.
“An Argentinian franchise will allow their coaches to monitor their best players more closely and allow promising players a platform that doesn’t include going to Europe.”
Pumas coach Daniel Hourcade is optimistic that a new approach might change their fortunes.
“A win is very important to us, but it is not our main priority at this stage,” Hourcade said. “We want to develop our playing style and show improvement in all aspects of the game.
“This is a new team with a lot of new players and it’s very important for us to see these players raise their game to the level expected.”
Player depth has been an issue for the Pumas, but the Pampas XV won the Pacific Rugby Cup earlier this year, which included the secondstringers of the Australian franchises, as well as Samoa, Fiji and Tonga.
The Pampas learnt from the Waratahs, and several of those players are now in the test squad, which will add to their growth.