Following a victory last time out, which ended a run of three defeats, the Jaguares will look to make it consecutive wins when they face the Reds in Buenos Aires on Saturday.
Mario Ledesma’s men did not have the most auspicious starts to the campaign, succumbing to the Stormers before losing heavily to the Lions and Hurricanes, but there is a sense that they are beginning to find their fluency under their new boss.
The victory over an admittedly disappointing Waratahs side was a step forward – the only frustration being that they did not get the bonus-point – and that will give them confidence going into this encounter.
Although they are taking on a Reds team who have enjoyed successive triumphs, Brad Thorn’s outfit have enjoyed a far easier opening to the season, having arguably played weaker opposition throughout their opening three games.
To Thorn’s credit, he took over a franchise that was in the doldrums and has managed to record two positive results, based on strong foundations up front which should give them a stable platform moving forward.
Despite having a reasonably youthful pack at his disposal, the New Zealander has forged what could prove to be a pretty formidable unit. In Taniela Tupou and Izack Rodda, the Queenslanders have two hugely exciting prospects in the front five while Angus Scott-Young and Adam Korczyk are also talented young players in the back row.
They will have to be at their best if they are to halt the Argentineans, however, with Ledesma’s team usually strong at home against Australian teams. In Emiliano Boffelli, they have one of the form wings in the competition while Joaquin Tuculet continues to impress from full-back.
The pack also appears strong on paper with Agustin Creevy and Pablo Matera consistently excellent performers in the forward eight. Although the Reds have been strong defensively and up front this year, the hosts will expect a repeat of last season’s result.
The last time the teams met: Following the Jaguares’ inception into Super Rugby in 2016, these sides have only gone head-to-head once before, with the Argentinean outfit coming out on top. The hosts controlled the match from the start as Jeronimo de la Fuente and Ramiro Moyano touched down to give them a 15-3 lead at the interval – a Jake McIntyre penalty the Reds’ sole response before the break. De la Fuente then crossed the whitewash to complete the victory, despite Scott Higginbotham’s effort reducing the arrears with 20 minutes remaining, as the Jaguares went away with a 22-8 triumph.
Players to watch:
For Jaguares: While the stars of the back three are Joaquin Tuculet and Emiliano Boffelli, youngster Bautista Delguy has settled nicely since joining the Jaguares this season. Delguy was excellent for the Sevens side last year and the 20-year-old’s transition into Super Rugby has been smooth, with his pace and footwork a constant worry for opposing defences. Although the wing has yet to truly set the competition alight, it is well worth watching his progress for Mario Ledesma’s men on Saturday and throughout the season.
For Reds: Despite their lack of creativity in the opening rounds, the Brisbane-based outfit’s outside backs have shown plenty of promise. In particular, Chris Feauai-Sautia is playing some excellent rugby and starting to display his immense talent. Last season, the centre struggled with his weight after knee surgery and was on the brink of being axed, but Feauai-Sautia has since refocused and re-found the motivation. He is certainly a player who could feature regularly for the Wallabies so the Jaguares need to be wary of his threat.
Team news: The Jaguares have kept the same XV which beat the Waratahs when they face the Reds on Saturday. The only changes come on the bench with Martin Landajo and Juan Martin Hernandez replacing Felipe Ezcurra and Joaquin Diaz Bonilla respectively.
For the visitors, they make just one alteration to their side with Angus Scott-Young featuring at flanker instead of Liam Wright, who is among the replacements.
It will be Scott-Young’s first start in Super Rugby having made his debut against the Brumbies two weeks ago. He joins Caleb Timu and Adam Korczyk in forming a talented back-row for the Queenslanders.
There are also three changes in the reserves with Andrew Ready, Ruan Smith and Ben Lucas joining JP Smith, Harry Hockings, Hamish Stewart and Duncan Paia’aua.
Form: Three successive defeats was not the best way for the Jaguares to begin the year, with them going down to the Stormers, Lions and Hurricanes, but they were significantly improved at home to the Waratahs. They defeated the Sydney-based outfit 38-28 after a superb first half display – a result which will give them huge confidence going into this encounter.
The Reds, meanwhile, have played one less game but go into the match with two victories under their belts. Their opening encounter was disastrous as they were handed a 45-19 thrashing by the Rebels following an early red card to Scott Higginbotham, but the Queenslanders have recovered well. Although they haven’t been the most thrilling affairs, home wins over the Brumbies and Bulls means that they have found some form.
Prediction: Despite a pretty poor start to the campaign, the Argentinean outfit were too good for the Waratahs last weekend and we expect a similar result against the Reds. Jaguares by 9.
Previous result:
2017: Jaguares won 22-8 in Buenos Aires
The teams:
Jaguares: 15 Joaquin Tuculet, 14 Bautista Delguy, 13 Matias Orlando, 12 Santiago Iglesias, 11 Emiliano Boffelli, 10 Nicolas Sanchez, 9 Gonzalo Bertranou, 8 Javier Ortega Desio, 7 Marcos Kremer, 6 Pablo Matera (c), 5 Tomas Lavanini, 4 Matias Alemanno, 3 Nahuel Tetaz Chaparro, 2 Agustin Creevy, 1 Felipe Arregui
Replacements: 16 Julian Montoya, 17 Santiago Botta, 18 Juan Pablo Zeiss, 19 Guido Petti, 20 Juan Manuel Leguizamon, 21 Martin Landajo, 22 Juan Martin Hernandez, 23 Sebastian Cancelliere
Reds: 15 Aidan Toua, 14 Filipo Daugunu, 13 Chris Feauai-Sautia, 12 Samu Kerevi, 11 Eto Nabuli, 10 Jono Lance, 9 James Tuttle, 8 Caleb Timu, 7 Adam Korczyk, 6 Angus Scott-Young, 5 Kane Douglas, 4 Izack Rodda, 3 Taniela Tupou, 2 Brandon Paenga-Amosa, 1 James Slipper (c)
Replacements: 16 Andrew Ready, 17 JP Smith, 18 Ruan Smith, 19 Harry Hockings, 20 Liam Wright, 21 Ben Lucas, 22 Hamish Stewart, 23 Duncan Paia’aua
Date: Saturday, March 17
Venue: Jose Amalfitani Stadium, Buenos Aires
Kick-off: 18:40 local (21:40 GMT)
Referee: Paul Williams (New Zealand)
Assistant referees: Jamie Nutbrown (New Zealand), Pablo Deluca (Argentina)
TMO: Santiago Borsani (Argentina)
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