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The Jaguares have become Super Rugby's much-needed feel-good story
In a year in which certain pundits have criticised and called for the expulsion of the Jaguares from Super Rugby, it seems only fitting that they have become the competition’s feel-good story.
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No one knew back in 2016 how the Jaguares would go in the tournament, whether or not they would prove to be a sustainable venture or how successful they would be in stemming the tide of players leaving Argentina for contracts in Europe.
The only thing that was certain was the immense potential that the side offered. Whether or not they would ever fulfil it was another matter.
The critiques levelled at the Buenos Aires-based side this season – they conveniently coincide with their improved fortunes and ability, in particular, to start picking up away wins – have revolved around the fact they are, in essence, a national side.
Argentina may have abandoned their cut and dry home-based selection policy, but they do still lean on it heavily, ensuring that most times the Jaguares take to the pitch, they are fielding a 23 that is almost entirely capped at Test level. This, critics argue, makes them a national side and not a provincial one like the opposition they face in Super Rugby.
Jaguares v Chiefs | Super Rugby Quarter Final 2 Highlights
The @JaguaresARG have recorded their maiden Super Rugby finals win with a 21-16 Quarter-Finals win over @ChiefsRugby in Buenos Aires.#SuperRugby #JAGvCHI #SR19Finals pic.twitter.com/iltQUMQ9OE— Super Rugby Pacific (@SuperRugby) June 22, 2019
Frankly, this is not news. The goal of the Jaguares was always for the franchise to be a vehicle for Los Pumas and this was set out quite clearly when the side was created and joined the competition in 2016.
It’s funny how there were no complaints when the Jaguares finished 13th in 2016 or 10th in 2017. There weren’t even murmurings when they finished seventh in 2018 and made the play-offs for the first time.
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But now that they’re finishing second on the overall log and knocking off a team like the Chiefs in the play-offs, it seems as though their presence is harder to stomach.
Thankfully, though, these criticisms are in the minority, with most revelling in the success of the Argentine side and using their upward trajectory as a way of pushing higher standards in their own teams and nations.
The Jaguares’ haul of 11 wins this season had them level with the Crusaders at the top of the table. Of those 11, five came on the road, with two victories in South Africa and Australia apiece, as well as a memorable night knocking off the Hurricanes in Wellington.
For a competition that has been accused of over-expansion, diminishing quality and an inability to hold fan interest, the rise of the Jaguares has been a much-needed feel-good story, especially following the development that the Sunwolves are set to be cut from the tournament.
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Este es el equipo para jugar la semifinal ante @BrumbiesRugby el viernes. ¡Vamos @JaguaresARG!#JAGvBRU #PersonalSuperRugby #ViviJaguares pic.twitter.com/75kxBXc3YO
— Jaguares (@JaguaresARG) June 26, 2019
Having advanced from the quarter-finals with the aforementioned win over the Chiefs, Gonzalo Quesada’s team are now faced by a Brumbies team full of confidence following their 38-13 trouncing of the Sharks in Canberra. The Jaguares won the match-up between these two earlier in the season, a 20-15 victory in Buenos Aires.
That match encapsulated the success the franchise have had since their creation four years ago. Scrum-half Tomás Cubelli and flanker Pablo Matera were two of the standouts on the day. Cubelli was lured back to Argentina, ironically from the Brumbies as a result of opportunity at the Jaguares, while Matera has been part of the franchise’s entire journey having left Leicester Tigers to join them for their inaugural season.
The same goes for talismanic captain Agustín Creevy, who left Worcester Warriors to head home and lead the side in their fledgling 2016 season. Emiliano Boffelli and Marcos Kremer also stood out against the Brumbies and they are two clear examples of how the Jaguares have been able to help develop talent in Argentina and turn them into influential international players.
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Chances were taken that day by Santiago Carreras and Domingo Miotti, which showed that the franchise have been able to blood younger, more inexperienced players this season while still competing at the very top of Super Rugby.
Their lineout has been one of the most consistent and effective units in the competition thanks to the almost telepathic connection between Creevy and Guido Petti, while their try differential of +22 is comfortably the second best in the competition. It sees off all rivals but the Crusaders, whose mark of +42 is indicative of their current dominance.
It is understandable then why the team’s fortunes may have caused an ounce of professional jealousy. That said, there is no special treatment for the Jaguares, who are subject to exactly the same kind of issues and challenges that face every other Super Rugby side.
Santiago García Botta and Martín Landajo are both off to Harlequins after the World Cup, Tomás Lavanini heads to Leicester Tigers and even stalwart Matera will link up with Stade Français. It should not be surprising then that Quesada has blooded a number of new faces this season and his impact as head coach has certainly been felt with the franchise finding the perfect balance between immediate performance and long-term development.
Although those personnel losses are significant, and there are likely to be a few more names added to the list before their squad for the 2020 Super Rugby season is finalised, the Jaguares have shown they are not adverse to plucking the brightest young Argentine talents and throwing them into the deep end of competition.
In addition to the names already mentioned, Mayco Vivas, Santiago Medrano and Bautista Delguy have all been leant on heavily, while 2018 World Rugby Under-20 Championship stars Lucio Sordoni and Carreras have been given their first taste of senior club rugby.
Throw into the mix the next generation of players coming through that ever-improving Argentine pathway, such as Bautista Pedemonte, Ignacio Mendy and Mateo Carreras, and there is no reason to assume this peak is a one-season wonder for the men from Buenos Aires.
With Quesada in place at the Jaguares and Mario Ledesma on board with Los Pumas, the connected thinking between the franchise and the national team seems to be in place, the pathway is productive and all that remains is for the national team to settle on a style of play that works for them and is conducive to their success in the international arena.
As for Friday’s semi-final with the Brumbies, the Jaguares’ season will likely be deemed a success win or lose. But playing the way they have been and set to enjoy the backing of a vocal home crowd, few would bet against the Jaguares qualifying for their maiden Super Rugby final.
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Comments on RugbyPass
Dagg is still trying to get enough headlines to make himself relevant enough to get a job. The Crusaders went back to square one at all levels. Shelve this season and nail the next one.
4 Go to commentsHe was in such great form. Sad for him but only a short term injury and it will be great to see him back for the finals.
1 Go to commentsAfter their 5/0 start, I had the Crusaders to finish Top 4 only…they lost the plot in Perth but will reload and back themselves vs 4th placed Rebels…
3 Go to commentsBoth nations missed a great opportunity to book a game that would have had a lot of interest from around the world. I understand these games can’t be organised in 5 minutes but they should have found a way to make it happen. I don’t think Wales are ducking anyone but it’s a bad look haha.
3 Go to commentsIt will be fascinating to see the effect that Jo Yapp has. If they can compete with Canada and give BFs a run for their money that will be progress
1 Go to commentsFollowing his dream and putting in the work. Go well young fella!
3 Go to commentsPerhaps filling Twickenham is one of Mitchell’s KPIs. I doubt whether both September matches will be at Twickenham on consecutive weekends. I would take the BF one to a large provincial stadium so as not to give them the advantage and experience of playing at Twickenham before a large crowd prior to the RWC.
3 Go to commentsvery unfortunate for Kitshoff, but big opportunity potentially for Nché to prove he is genuinely the best loosehead in the world, rather than just a specialist finisher. Presuming that if Kitshoff is out, it will also give Steenekamp a chance to come into the 23? Or are others likely to be ahead of him?
1 Go to commentsA long held question in popular culture asks if art imitates life or does the latter influence the former? Over this 6 nations I can ask the same question of the media influencing the thoughts of its audience or vice versa. Nobody wants to see cricket scores in rugby, as a spectacle it is not sustainable. With so many articles about England’s procession and lack of competition it feeds the epicaricacy of many looking for an opportunity to pounce. England are not the first team to dominate nor does it happen only in rugby, think Federer, Nadal, Red Bull or Mercedes, Manchester Utd, Australia in tests and World Cups. Instead of celebrating the achievements why find reasons to falsify it pointing towards larger playing pool, professional for a longer period or mitigate with the lack of growth in other nations. Can we not enjoy it while it is here and know that it won’t last for ever, others coveting what England have will soon take the crown, ask the aforementioned?
6 Go to commentsShame he won’t turn out for the Netherlands now they’re improving. U20s are Euro champs and in the U20 Trophy this year. The senior sides gets better every year too.
3 Go to commentsWill rugbypass tv be showing these games?
1 Go to commentsWell where do you start, the fact that England have a professional domestic league and Ireland’s is fully amatuer, that they have fully seperated professional squads at Fifteens and Sevens (7’s thinly disguised as GB), and Ireland have fully pro Sevens squad who loan some players back to the Semi-Professional Fifteens squad (moved from amateur for only a year or so) for a few games at 6N & RWC’s. The Women’s games is a shambles, and is at risk of killing itself by pushing for professionalism when the market isn’t really there to support it outside one or two countnries..
6 Go to commentsWayne Smith's input didn't have as much impact on the last final as Davison's red card for Thompson. England were 14 points up and flying when that happened.
6 Go to commentsBilly's been playing consistently well for 2 - 3 seasons now and deserves a look in at the top level. Ioane and ALB are still first choice but there needs to be injury cover and succession. His partnership with Jordie gives him first dibs you'd think. Go the Hurricanes.
3 Go to commentsIt’s not up to Wales to support Georgian Rugby. That’s up to International Rugby and Georgia. I sympathise with Georgia’s decent attempt to create this fixture. But for Wales the proposed match up is just a potential stick to beat them with and a potential big psychological blow that young Welsh team doesn’t need. (I’m Irish BTW.)
3 Go to commentsCale certainly looks great in space, but as you say, he has struggled in contact. At 23 years old, turning 24 this year, he should be close to full physical maturity and yet there exists a considerable gap in the power and physicality required for international rugby. Weight doesn’t automatically equate to power and physicality either. Can he go from a player who’s being physically dominated in Super rugby to physically dominating in international rugby in 1 or 2 years? That’s a big ask but he may end up being a late bloomer.
37 Go to commentsIf rugby wants to remain interesting in the AI era then it will need to work on changing the rules. AI will reduce the tactical advantage of smart game plans, will neutralize primary attacking weapons, and will move rugby from a being a game of inches to a game of millimetres. It will be about sheer athleticism and technique,about avoiding mistakes, and about referees. Many fans will find that boring. The answer is to add creative degrees of freedom to the game. The 50-22 is an example. But we can have fun inventing others, like the right to add more players for X minutes per game, or the equivalent of the 2-point conversion in American football, the ability to call a 12-player scrum, etc. Not saying these are great ideas, but making the point that the more of these alternatives you allow, the less AI will be able to lock down high-probability strategies. This is not because AI does not have the compute power, but because it has more choices and has less data, or less-specific data. That will take time and debate, but big, positive and immediate impact could be in the area of ref/TMO assistance. The technology is easily good enough today to detect forward passes, not-straight lineouts, offside at breakdown/scrum/lineout, obstruction, early/late tackles, and a lot of other things. WR should be ultra aggressive in doing this, as it will really help in an area in which the game is really struggling. In the long run there needs to be substantial creativity applied to the rules. Without that AI (along with all of the pro innovations) will turn rugby into a bash fest.
24 Go to commentsSouth Africa rarely play Ireland and France on these tours. Mostly, England, Scotland and Wales. I wonder why
2 Go to commentsIt was a let’s-see-what-you're-made-of type of a game. The Bulls do look good when the opposition allows them to, but Munster shut them down, and they could not find a way through. Jake should be very worried about their chances in the competition.
2 Go to commentsHats off to Fabian for a very impressive journey to date. Is it as ‘uniquely unlikely’ as Rugby Pass suggests, given Anton Segner’s journey at the Blues?
3 Go to comments