Argentine rugby, from prey to predator

In international rugby there are no revolutions: assaults are cooked over low heat.

Argentina made merits to become the fourth diner in the southern hemisphere and converted in 2012 the Three Nations (South Africa, New Zealand and Australia, which add up to eight of the nine World Cups played) in the Rugby Championship.

While Italy struggles to claim its place in the Six Nations 22 years after its arrival, the Argentines, third in the 2007 World Cup and fourth in 2015, continue to climb the ladder.

A decade later, they lead the tournament in their equator after the first win in their history on kiwi soil.

That night, a foreboding motto was written on the blackboard in his locker room: “Remember this day guys.

It will be yours for the rest of your life."

Argentine rugby has shown flashes in recent years – in 2020 they achieved the first victory in their history against the

– but they could not build on the foundations of the old guard.

Mario Ledesma, one of the country's great personalities, did not live up to his expectations as national coach.

His ordeal to "come out champions" in the 2019 World Cup ended with his elimination in the first phase.

The coach earned international prestige as the architect of Australia's scrums, runner-up in 2015. He laid out a rocky philosophy, focused on pushing forward and with just the right flourishes.

The international isolation due to the pandemic did not help a country with modest domestic competition either.

🗣️ "The blue and white passion was stronger in Christchurch, and today, all Argentine rugby celebrates being more awake than ever."

#VamosLosPumas #RugbyArgentino pic.twitter.com/sK8TorPwYx

– The Pumas (@lospumas) August 27, 2022

Ledesma's boss in that Australian team, Michael Cheika, came to Argentina as his assistant and was promoted to the position of coach.

This Australian, of Lebanese descent, has won the main club competitions in each hemisphere: the European Cup and Super Rugby.

He is a challenger, an emotional coach who squeezes the psyche like few others.

And that he does not shy away from a good fight at a press conference.

His personality has fallen on his feet in the locker room.

He arrived in May and proposed a more open game, faster, with more risk.

Freedom for the three quarters in a country that has never lacked fast men, skill in the hands, good

.

Rugby arrived in Argentina at the end of the 19th century at the hands of the English, but its school is more French: less muscle, less order and more virtuosity.

He did not get off to an easy start in the three-game series against Scotland which the Pumas, who were playing at home, won by suffering in the last game.

They started the Rugby Championship with two home games against Australia.

In the first they went from more to less and ended up giving up (26-41) in Mendoza.

with seven trials

48-17, the most comfortable victory they achieved against a team that had won 28 of the 38 games played between them.

And then came the trip to New Zealand.

Both teams played for the first time in 1979 and, to contextualize the milestone of winning on Kiwi soil, the

they have won 31 of the 34 games played, with one draw and the two Argentine victories.

You don't have to go far for the last New Zealand beating: a 39-0 in 2021. The great tyrant of rugby not so long ago lives an unknown vulnerability and came from losing three of his last four games before winning in South Africa.

All in all, Christchurch is a fortress and Argentina gave its most solvent version.

The defense was immaculate, with 195 tackles, an exorbitant figure, reducing the best attack in the world to three points in the second half.

And with discipline, because a guerrilla like striker Tomás Lavanini finished the duel without a single foul.

Emiliano Boffelli was infallible in the kicks to sticks and scored 20 of the 25 points of his team.

And Juan Martín González, a cheeky talent born in 2000,

The two Argentine victories have coincided with the complete representation of their anthem in the last two games.

In times of national instability, rugby has doubled its support and all tickets are already sold to receive South Africa in Buenos Aires on September 17.

The Pumas lead the tournament with 9 points, the same as Australia, but with a better

.

With one more point, they would add their best result in the 10 editions of the Rugby Championship.

This Saturday they repeat in New Zealand, this time in Hamilton, before some injured kiwis.

His calendar is completed by a visit to Durban on the last day, perhaps with the title at stake.

The talent of Argentine rugby comes from the work of more than 600 clubs.

The offensive imprint is a trend in the local competition, with most of the 13 teams in the highest category involved in the philosophy.

Even Tucuman rugby, the most seasoned, is steeped in the style of the national team.

Argentine rugby created a franchise to compete in Super Rugby and restricted the competition in the Pumas to those who played in the country.

To compete with the greats they had to play together, that was the idea, the limitation.

The flexibility of criteria – they once again select players who compete outside the country – has brought back the logic of the emigrant.

Argentina no longer feels less than anyone.

He does not lament his shortcomings, but rather wields his virtues.

His claws.

The Pumas are a predator of rugby.

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