Rugby World Cup, Argentina-England, third place up for grabs

There is a curious link between Argentina, which in 2007 took third place in the Rugby World Cup, its best finish ever, and the team that will challenge England in the final of the 2023 World Cup tomorrow at 9pm in Saint-Denis: even then the Pumas began and closed the tournament by challenging the same team, which 16 years ago had been hosts France. However, the difference so far lies in the results: then Argentina won both matches, this time starting from the defeat suffered in the debut match. An unexpected defeat that came in a bizarre manner, with the English forced into numerical inferiority from the 3rd minute due to Tom Curry’s red card, but capable of messing up the opponent’s play and then winning 27-10 thanks to 6 placed goals and 3 drops from George Ford .

IL CHE, IL SIC, IL ROSARIO CENTRAL

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The two teams also faced each other in the semi-final of the Japanese World Cup 4 years ago, when England won 39-10 in the semi-final. The tradition of matches played in the world championship tournament, on the other hand, leans totally on the side of the squad with two other victories: 24-18 in South Africa in 1995, 13-9 in New Zealand in 2011. That rugby in Argentina arrived thanks to the English is well known, but there is a much less well-known anecdote that tells how this sport had been surrounded for decades by the general disinterest of the Argentinians. Ernest Che Guevara, as we know, was a decent rugby player in his youth, appreciated and nicknamed the “Fuser”, from the acrasis between the word “furibondo” and his mother’s surname “de la Serna”: he played there for 9 years, covering various roles, from scrum half to third row, between Estudiantes of Cordoba and San Isidro Club (simply SIC for everyone), one of the most important clubs in the country. In August 1961, when he held the role of Minister for Industry in Cuba, he secretly entered Argentina to meet President Arturo Frondizi: no one knew that this would be Che’s last visit to his native country. During the journey from Ezeiza airport to the presidential palace, the small and secret procession passed right in front of the SIC stadium and the Commander asked the driver: “So, how is the SIC going lately?”. And the driver responded with a perplexed “how is who doing?”. From the answer, Che understood that rugby had not yet succeeded in making inroads into the passions of his compatriots, so he corrected himself, perhaps to make a good impression: “I meant, how is Rosario Central going?”, since everyone knew that it was the most important football team in his hometown, in the province of Santa Fe. Many years had passed since the English exported rugby and football to Argentina at the beginning of the nineteenth century, but evidently, those who practiced it like Che Guevara had no idea that it was so little known among the people.

ELITE AGAINST THE PEOPLE

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The beginnings of rugby in Argentina are almost indistinguishable from those of football, given that at the beginning in England itself there was not yet a clear differentiation between the two sports, with rather ambiguous historical data and references. And also because the rules of the two sports had not yet been formalized, either at a national or international level. In Argentina, moreover, both sports were often practiced, given that the English had created and managed multi-sports clubs within which rowing, cricket and tennis were also practiced, to keep together the community of compatriots who had emigrated and were fond of national sports. Unlike football, however, rugby has not established itself as a strong symbol of “Argentine identity”. A difficulty also linked to the social status of the practitioners, given that rugby is historically linked to the elite, unlike football, which is essentially popular. According to Martin Caparros, Argentine journalist and writer, “while footballers were dark-haired, foundlings, poor and ignorant, rugby players were blond, well-built, well-educated and amateurs: because they didn’t need money”. His opinion, however, is not shared by everyone, not even by Gonzalo Quesada, historic fly-half of the Argentine national team and new coach of Italy, who in an old interview with Le Monde replied thus: “It is true that at its origins rugby it was a bourgeois and elitist sport in Argentina, but things have evolved, even if in France and elsewhere they continue to look at us that way. However, thanks to the progress and results of the Pumas from 1965 until the exploit of 2007, when we finished third, today this sport is no longer considered exclusive and in the clubs there is a mix of different social components”. That third place marked the turning point: “Immediately after the World Cup, registrations for rugby teams increased by 20%”, says former national team captain Adolfo Etchegaray. This is why tomorrow night’s match could mark a new turning point for Argentina: beating the nation that exported rugby to the world could give new impetus to a movement that has now stabilized on constant growth. Because then there will still be new generations to grow and try to aim even higher.

SO ON THE FIELD

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On the line-up front, the English coach Steve Borthwick made 8 changes compared to the XV lined up in the semi-final against South Africa: recovered from the concussion that caused him to miss the last match, Marcus Smith takes up the fullback shirt again, with Freddie Steward moves to wing in place of Johnny May (out of 23), Henry Arundell replaces Elliot Daly at other wing, Sam Underhill will play flanker in place of Courtney Lawes (who played his last international match with South Africa), while he is finally the front line is completely new with hooker Theo Dan and props Will Stuart and Ellis Genge. The choices of coach Michael Cheika, however, are much more conservative, as he makes only 3 changes in his Argentina team: the second line Pedro Rubiolo, the scrum half Tomas Cubelli and the center Jeronimo de la Fuente will take the place of Tomas Lavanini, Gonzalo Bertranou and Santiago Chocobares (all out of 23).

ENGLAND-ARGENTINA (27 OCTOBER, 9PM)

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England15 Smith; 14 Steward, 13 Marchant, 12 Tuilagi, 11 Arundell; 10 Farrell (c), 9 Youngs; 8 Earl, 7 Underhill, 6 Curry; 5 Chessum, 4 Itoje; 3 Stuart, 2 Dan, 1 Genge.
Available: 16 George, 17 Rodd, 18 Cole, 19 Ribbans, 20 Ludlam, 21 Care, 22 Ford, 23 Lawrence

Argentina 15 Cross Mallia; 14 Boffelli, 13 Cinti, 12 De la Fuente, 11 M. Carreras; 10 S. Carreras, 9 Cubelli; 8 Isa, 7 Kremer, 6 Gonzalez; 5 Rubiolo, 4 Petti; 3 Gomez Kodela, 2 Montoya (c), 1 Gallo.
Available: 16 Creevy, 17 Sclavi, 18 Bello, 19 Alemanno, 20 Bruni, 21 Bazan Velez, 22 Sanchez, 23 Moroni.