Argentina have suffered a major injury setback ahead of the Nations Championship, with two players ruled out and another facing uncertainty over his availability for the November Tests.
Coach Felipe Contepomi has lost experienced utility back Santiago Carreras and prop Thomas Gallo, while centre Santiago Chocobares is in doubt after suffering a head knock at the weekend. Carreras, who has 70 Test caps, limped off in the 13th minute of Bath’s 23-5 defeat to Gloucester on Friday and watched the remainder of the match on crutches.
The Argentina international is due to undergo a scan to determine the extent of his lower-limb injury, which appears serious. His place in the squad has been taken by Mateo Soler, who made his Test debut off the bench against the Wallabies last month.
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Gallo has also been withdrawn from the squad because of a wrist injury, with Dragons prop Rodrigo Martinez called up as cover. Martinez has four Test caps.
Meanwhile, Chocobares’ participation depends on the outcome of a head injury assessment after he was struck while playing for Toulouse. Matías Moroni has been placed on standby should Chocobares be ruled out, potentially giving the experienced centre a chance to reach 100 Test caps.
Moroni, 35, is currently on 99 caps but was initially left out of Argentina’s squad for the November internationals. He has not played for the Pumas since suffering a facial injury against Australia in August.
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Argentina have arrived in London ahead of a demanding run of fixtures against Ireland on 6 November, Italy on 14 November and France on 21 November, followed by the Nations Championship finals weekend.
Photo: Steve Haag Sports/Gallo Images
The post Los Pumas lose heavy-hitters to injury appeared first on SA Rugby magazine.
Argentina have suffered a major injury setback ahead of the Nations Championship, with two players ruled out and another facing uncertainty over his availability for the November Tests.
The post Los Pumas lose heavy-hitters to injury appeared first on SA Rugby magazine. Read More
