Both the Waratahs and Jaguares will be keen to return to winning ways when they do battle in Sydney on Saturday.
These two sides have not impressed in this year's tournament and are out of the running to reach the play-offs.
But despite that, they will be keen to impress and both teams will also be highly motivated as this will be the first-ever clash between them.
The Waratahs have disappointed throughout their campaign and have amassed a paltry 19 points from 13 matches played this year – a whopping 14 points adrift of the Brumbies, who are sitting pretty at the top of the Australian Conference table.
The Jaguares, meanwhile, are also-rans on the Africa 2 Conference standings. They are currently in third place – behind the Lions and Sharks – with 25 points from 13 matches but are just two points ahead of the bottom-placed Southern Kings, who claimed a shock 31-30 win over the Argentinian outfit in Buenos Aires last weekend.
A loss to the Waratahs and victory to the Kings in their clash with the Bulls in Pretoria will mean that the Jaguares will be bringing up the rear on the table when the sides head into the final week of the league phase of the competition.
The Waratahs have lost their last 10 games in a row against teams from outside Australia, their longest ever drought in such fixtures – the last time they beat a team from outside their home nation was in Round 15 last season against the Sunwolves.
Discipline, or a lack thereof, has been the Jaguares' Achilles heel since they joined Super Rugby last year and 2017 has been no different. They are the most penalised team in the competition this season, conceding an average of 11.4 infractions per game.
Players to watch: Although the Waratahs have had an up-and-down season, one player who will always be dangerous with ball in hand is exciting full-back Israel Folau. Fresh off a stint with the Wallabies, Folau returns to the Super Rugby having scored five tries in his last four games as well as four in his last two at home.
The Jaguares have been boosted by the return of their talismanic captain and first-choice hooker Agustin Creevy. If the visitors want to return to their winning ways, Creevy will have to be at his best as he is one of the game's best players in his position, when on song. The 32-year-old is renowned for his offloading and ball carrying ability but his leadership will be crucial if the men from Buenos Aires want to cause an upset this weekend.
Team news: The Waratahs have made two selection and one positional change to their starting team for this match. Jack Dempsey takes the number six jersey while Bryce Hegarty starts on the right wing ahead of Taqele Naiyaravoro who moves to the bench. With Will Skelton unavailable for selection after breaking his arm in a club rugby match last weekend, recently capped Wallaby Ned Hanigan will move from blindside flanker to lock.Gibson has made two changes to the reserves bench with Andrew Kellaway returning from injury and Ryan McCauley, the Australian U20 lock, on the bench and will make his Waratahs debut if called on to play.
Argentina captain Agustín Creevy returns to the starting lineup to captain the Jaguares. Creevy, who takes over the captaincy from scrum-half Martín Landajo, replaces Julián Montoya in the number two jersey. Jaguares coach Raúl Pérez has made three other changes to the team that lost 31-30 to the Kings last week. In the front row, Enrique Pieretto comes in at tighthead prop, with Nahuel Tetaz moving to loosehead prop in place of the injured Lucas Noguera. In the second row, Benjamin Macome comes in for Matías Alemanno – with the lock also injured in last Friday's match against Kings. The last change is in the backline, with Jerónimo De la Fuente returning at inside centre and Bautista Ezcurra dropping out.
Form: The Waratahs have delivered a mixed bag of results in their most recent performances. After losing to the Blues, they had a bye in Round 12 but bounced back with an impressive win over the Rebels. However, they suffered back-to-back defeats to the Highlanders and Chiefs in their next two matches.
The Jaguares' last triumph was registered in Round 11 when they beat the Sunwolves in Buenos Aires. Since then, they have suffered defeats to the Western Force, Brumbies and Southern Kings.
Prediction: This clash will be a tight battle although the home side will just edge it. Waratahs to win by four points.
The teams:
Waratahs: 15 Israel Folau, 14 Bryce Hegarty, 13 Rob Horne, 12 David Horwitz, 11 Cam Clark, 10 Bernard Foley, 9 Jake Gordon, 8 Michael Wells, 7 Michael Hooper (c), 6 Jack Dempsey, 5 Dean Mumm, 4 Ned Hanigan, 3 Sekope Kepu, 2 Tolu Latu, 1 Tom Robertson
Replacements: 16 Damien Fitzpatrick, 17 Paddy Ryan, 18 Angus Taavao, 19 David McDuling, 20 Ryan McCauley, 21 Matt Lucas, 22 Taqele Naiyaravoro, 23 Andrew Kellaway
Jaguares: 15 Joaquín Tuculet, 14 Matías Moroni, 13 Matías Orlando, 12 Jerome de la Fuente, 11 Emiliano Boffelli, 10 Nicolás Sánchez, 9 Martín Landajo, 8 Leonardo Senatore, 7 Juan Manuel Leguizamón, 6 Pablo Matera, 5 Benjamin Macome, 4 Guido Petti, 3 Enrique Pieretto, 2 Agustin Creevy (c), 1 Nahuel Tetaz Chaparro
Replacements: 16 Julián Montoya, 17 Santiago García Botta, 18 Ramiro Herrera, 19 Ignacio Larrague, 20 Rodrigo Báez, 21 Gonzalo Bertranou, 22 Joaquín Díaz Bonilla, 23 Santiago Cordero
Date: Saturday, July 8
Venue: Allianz Stadium, Sydney
Kick-Off: 19:45 local (07:35 GMT)
Referee: Ben O'Keeffe (New Zealand)
Assistant Referees: Angus Gardner (Australia), Jordan Way (Australia)
TMO: Ian Smith (Australia)
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