Australia’s final match of the Rugby Championship will take place this Saturday in Queensland, and despite having already beaten Argentina’s top players, they will face a depleted Argentine squad.
After six members of the Argentine team spent the day traveling outside of Queensland, they were banned from returning to the state. After a COVID-19 outbreak, lockdown regulations were reinstated earlier this week.
On Saturday, September 25, Australia defeated a full-strength Argentina team 27-8. On Saturday, the Wallabies will play the Pumas again; this time, they’ll be favored by 18.5 points.
The Saturday, 3:05 a.m. ET kickoff time at Cbus Super Stadium in Queensland. Cloudy skies, 3 mph winds, and a temperature of 59 degrees are what the weatherman has predicted.
Argentina’s Unfortunate Journey
On their day off on Wednesday, the Argentine team took a trip to a health resort in New South Wales, where they were joined by the team’s manager Lucas Chioccarelli and video analyst Rodrigo Martnez. The players included Sebastián Cancelliere, Joaqun Dáz Bonilla, Felipe Ezcurra, Pablo Matera, Santiago Medrano, and Santiago Socino.
Unfortunately, a COVID-19 epidemic broke out in the area while they were gone. Restrictive regulations regarding international travel for Queensland Health employees were reinstated. On Wednesday, the Argentinians were denied reentry to Queensland after an earlier attempt to return.
Three of those suspended were on the team that went down to Australia last week. Matera was the tighthead prop, with Medrano in the number eight position. They both have permanent spots on the A-team. Socino, the hooker, was sitting on the bench.
There are 44 players on Coach Mario Ledesma’s roster. He decided to replace Medrano with Enrique Pieretto. We’ve replaced Matera with Rodrigo Bruni. There were a total of five changes made to the team that had last week’s disappointing result.
Australia Kicking It Old School
As announced by coach Dave Rennie, three players from Australia’s winning lineup against Argentina’s Pumas will be replaced by substitutes. Initially, Pete Samu will play blindside flanker. Jordan Petaia on the wing replaces Marika Koroibete. In the second row forwards, Darcy Swain has replaced Matt Philip.
However, the most interesting roster changes this week may have been the ones made to the Wallabies’ bench. The selection marks Greg Holmes’s first time on the roster since 2016. A back row forward, Sean McMahon has been waiting for a call-up since 2017.
Holmes, at age 38, is the oldest player to be called up by Australia since World War II. Holmes had requested a visit to the Australian base so that he could take notes. His future plans include transitioning into a coaching role once his playing days are over.
With the team’s young front-row forwards in need of some guidance, Rennie enlisted Holmes’s help. Allan Alaalatoa’s injury creates an opportunity for the seasoned player to return to the national team lineup.
Wallabies Walloping Everyone
The Wallabies started the Rugby Championship with back-to-back losses to New Zealand, but if you’re looking for some rugby betting action, don’t count them out just yet. Australia has been unstoppable ever since…” Two of Australia’s victories came against South Africa before finally defeating Argentina
Argentina’s record now stands at 0-5-1. Only in close games against the Springboks and the Wallabies by 19 points have the Pumas come close to victory.
The Argentines may be in for a long afternoon as they need to be more staffed.