Reports: Michael Cheika tipped to replace Mario Ledesma as Los Pumas boss
Former Wallabies head coach Michael Cheika is reportedly set to replace Mario Ledesma as Los Pumas boss, according to multiple reports.
Ledesma resigned from his role at the helm of the Argentine national side following a horror 2021 campaign where they went winless in the Rugby Championship and won only three of their 12 tests, all while not playing a single match in Argentina.
That record is stark in comparison to Argentina’s showing in 2020, when they came second in a truncated Tri Nations series after beating the All Blacks for the first time and went unbeaten in two tests against the Wallabies in Australia.
Those are now distant memories, though, and Los Pumas are in dire straits 18 months out from next year’s World Cup in France.
However, Argentina may have the answer to their problems in the form of Cheika, who, according to Argentine newspaper La Nacion, is reported to be unveiled as Ledesma’s successor.
Cheika worked in a consultancy role for Argentina during the 2020 Tri Nations and 2021 Rugby Championship, and ESPN reports that Union de Argentina president Marcelo Rodriguez could announce Cheika as Los Pumas boss as early as this week.
Since departing as Wallabies head coach following a dismal 2019 World Cup campaign, culminating in a heavy quarter-final defeat to England, Cheika has worked in various positions across the world.
In addition to his assistant role for Los Pumas under the guidance of Ledesma, who was his assistant at the Wallabies, Cheika holds the director of rugby position at the NEC Green Rockets Tokatsu in Japan’s League One competition.
He was also due to coach Lebanon at last year’s Rugby League World Cup before its postponement to the end of this year, and is currently working as a pundit for Stan Sport and Channel Nine in Australia.
If the 2015 World Rugby Coach of the Year is appointed as Los Pumas head coach, he could square off against the Wallabies in a World Cup quarter-final next year.
With the Wallabies in Pool C alongside Wales and Fiji, and Los Pumas in Pool D alongside England, Japan and Samoa, the top-ranked teams from those pools will play the second-placed sides in the opposite group in the first knockout stage.
That would provide Australian rugby with a tantalising storyline, although Cheika would come up against the Wallabies before then in the Rugby Championship.
The Wallabies are scheduled to face Los Pumas twice in Argentina in August, with the first test to be played at Estadio San Juan del Bicentenario in San Juan, and the second at Estadio Malvinas Argentinas in Mendoza.
Los Pumas will also host Scotland in a three-test series in July before going on to play further Rugby Championship fixtures against the All Blacks in Hamilton and Christchurch, and against the Springboks in Buenos Aires and Durban.
At the time of writing, only one Los Pumas fixture has been locked in for the November test window, which will come against England at Twickenham.
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Ben it's beyond their comprehension-
202 Go to commentsThanks Sam. Interesting read. Harder or easier for Parling to come into a completely new setup where performance was abysmal last time out? I’d suggest easier to be better but, as you suggest, will be a lot to do with how much latitude he’s granted. Hopefully all he needs. With hybrids like Holloway, Hannigan, Swinton and Leota as options at 6 we have the basics for a strong lineout. BPA returning means we have good options at 2 also with Faessler, Porecki and Uelese, although Jordan is a scrumming beast rather than a dart thrower. I’m typically a pessimist or realist but that’s never applied to the Wallabies
1 Go to commentsMad how this somehow contained absolutely zero information.
1 Go to commentsI’m looking forward to attending the Twickenham match, I don’t think it will have a bearing on the outcome of the grand prize itself but it will tell us more about each teams’ preparation and game plan. It’s hard to look past one of the big four (I’m including Canada) lifting the trophy in 2025 but sport is a curious thing, there will still be twists and turns in road ahead.
2 Go to commentsThe better side seems to be the losing side a lot these days. As far as narrative goes. Must be the big emergent culture of “participation awards” that have emerged in nanny states. ”It looked like New Zealand would take the game from there but lapses in execution let South Africa get back into the game. New Zealand’s goal kickers left five points out there, including a very make-able penalty on the stroke of half”. Sounds like a chronic problem… I wonder how the better team has lapses in concentration and execution? Or are those not important factors in the grand scheme of total performances? In 2023, the ABs at least didn’t give up a lead to lose. They just couldn’t execute to get the points and take the lead. This Baby AB result points to a choke - letting the game slip through your fingers. In the words of the great Ricky Bobby’s dad - “If you’re not 1st you’re last!” Loosely translated - if you didn’t win, you’re a loser.
9 Go to commentsWith Stuart Lancaster at the helm, Racing 92 looks more and more a mercenaries club like Toulon some years ago and they are not even performing despite all the money on offer.
4 Go to commentsCouple of things BS missed: wind was behind the Baby Blacks in the first half. Baby Boks got points from a scrum penalty in the final quarter against this ‘dominant pack’, and left three points on the park after a missed penalty.
9 Go to commentsSensible thoughts on this, Brett. Also worth considering we’ve sold 60k tickets for a game between the Rebels and the Lions next year. Got to be roughly $10m in ticket and game day revenue there.
5 Go to commentsUnsuccessful bitter ex Ulster player taking a pop shot at a side that isn't including his consistently poor mates up north
4 Go to commentsHis decision to play in France isn’t a petulant decision as this article suggests. I reckon that France is the perfect place to demonstrate that he can mix it in those battles Rassie references. It’s a good decision to try get into the squad. My personal opinion is that he wins more battles than he loses. I don’t have Rassie’s stats machine behind me, but Daymian’s is so strong moving through traffic and in the rip.
4 Go to commentsWow! Argie forward dominance is something I have not read in years….
1 Go to commentsIs the ‘snub’ really why he is leaving? He hasn’t said that has he? You don’t have to stay in SA to play for the Boks, so it’s not that he’s giving up on trying to get into the squad as the case would be in, say, England or New Zealand. Rassie made it clear that the early camps won’t feature all the players to play for the Boks this year so I can’t imagine Dayimani was too offended by being overlooked this time. It just seems like a sensationalist angle to take for a story without really knowing the player’s intentions.
4 Go to commentsWell, it is easily one of the best Irish sides, it’s just that their historical standard is very low.
4 Go to commentsThe Irish side is good. They have lost 2 games in the last 23 tests. In the last 12 months they have have a 60% win rate against the top 5 sides in the world. Over the same period south africa have a 67% win rate against the top 5 teams, and New Zealand are at 40%.
4 Go to commentsOnly 1247 days until RWC 2027 starts Bin Smuth🤣Can’t wait to see how unhinged you’re still gonna get between now & then
202 Go to commentsany chance either team will improve on their u20 world cup performances this time around? I assume both sides will be deeply disappointed with how things went.
6 Go to commentsAnother poor articles by a poor journo, nothing new from Ben, at least you are consistently bad lol, geez I will try and watch the match later, clearly Benny was only looking to one end of the pitch, hard to tell whom the Baby Blacks were playing if it wasn’t in the header 😄😄
9 Go to commentsNz should have won. I didn't watch the game, but the ref was at fault and the bounce of the ball and the Bokke used the Bomb squad and the Bokke slow the game down and the Bokke scrum. They should remove the scrum. The Bokke are to strong. Not fair. Nz should have won
9 Go to commentsProbably the worst article on a rugby match I have ever read
202 Go to commentsWho hurt this man.. LoL 😭
202 Go to comments