Argentina Starting Formation 2024 – Americas Rugby News

Los Pumas played 12 test matches in 2024. The fixtures were played as part of the July Internationals, November Internationals and the Rugby Championship. Following Rugby World Cup 2023, Felipe Contepomi replaced Michael Cheika as Head Coach. Contepomi brought with him new ideas which included new offensive and defensive structures and plenty of changes to the lineup.

Contepomi’s use of players came to a total of thirty-six in 2024. Before the first match was played, Contepomi spoke of his desire to expand the player pool to have 50 in contention. This number was not reached as 19 different forwards and 17 different backs played for Los Pumas in 2024. Certain players started different test matches in two or more positions.

Every player that started a test match in 2024 for Argentina is shown below. The players are listed according to the position in which they started. The number beside the player refers to the quantity of starts the player made in the position he is listed in.

1 Thomas Gallo (11); Mayco Vivas (1)
2 Julián Montoya (10); Ignacio Ruiz (2)
3 Joel Sclavi (7); Eduardo Bello (4); Lucio Sordoni (1)
4 Franco Molina (6); Guido Petti (3); Marcos Kremer (1); Pedro Rubiolo (1); Matías Alemanno (1)
5 Pedro Rubiolo (8); Tomás Lavanini (2); Lucas Paulos (2)
6 Pablo Matera (9); Juan Martín Gonzalez (2); Joaquin Moro (1)
7 Marcos Kremer (7); Juan Martín González (3); Santiago Grondona (2)
8 Joaquín Oviedo (9); Juan Martín González (3)
9 Gonzalo Bertranou (9); Gonzalo Garcia (2); Lautaro Bazán Vélez (1)
10 Tomás Albornoz (7); Santiago Carreras (5)
11 Mateo Carreras (9); Bautista Delguy (3)
12 Santiago Chocobares (7); Jerónimo de la Fuente (2); Matías Moroni (2); Matías Orlando (1)
13 Lucio Cinti (8); Matías Moroni (3); Santiago Chocobares (1)
14 Bautista Delguy (4); Rodrigo Isgró (4); Matías Moroni (2); Ignacio Mendy (1); Santiago Cordero (1)
15 Juan Cruz Mallía (8); Santiago Cordero (2); Martín Bogado (1); Santiago Carreras (1)

No Puma held down one starting position for the entirety of 2024. Captain Julián Montoya left early injured against France in Buenos Aires. This saw him sit-out the match against Uruguay and also the opening fixture of the Rugby Championship.

Montoya had ten starts, placing him second to Thomas Gallo for all 2024 Pumas. Gallo started all but one test match at loose head prop. Tight Head prop had three starting players with Joel Sclavi leading the way with 58.3% of the matches in the position.

Second-row saw Contepomi makes fundamental changes. After three Rugby World Cups the Lavanni-Petti-Alemanno trinity ended. Tomás Lavanini had two starts, Guido Petti three and Matías Alemanno one. Lucas Paulos started twice in July but was not subsequently selected. Pedro Rubiolo had a total of nine starts, eight of which were in the 5 shirt. Franco Molina had six starts in the 4 shirt.

Seven players had starts in the second-row while six started in the back-row. Marcos Kremer started once in the second-row and seven times at flanker. Juan Martin González is tied with Kremer with 8 starts in 2024; however, González played across the three back-row positions. Pablo Matera and Joaquín Oviedo both had nine starts without changing position.

Gonzalo Bertranou dominated scrum-half selection with 75% of the starts. Gonzalo García overtook Lautaro Bazán Vélez to be the second-choice in terms of overall starts. Tomás Cubelli did not play for Los Pumas in 2024.

Santiago Carreras began 2024 as the starting fly half. Tomás Albornoz replaced him during the Rugby Championship and went on to start 58.3% of the test matches in the 10 shirt. Veteran Nicolás Sánchez was not selected in 2024 nor was a rookie utilized in the position.

In addition to playing fly half, Santiago Carreras also had one start at fullback. Juan Cruz Mallía missed July due to Toulouse’s season finishing later than others. Martín Bogado and Santiago Cordero started at fullback in July. Mallía started eight of his nine test matches in 2024 at fullback.

Santiago Cordero comes in at second for fullback with two starts. He also had one start on the right wing. Bautista Delguy, and Rodrigo Isgró both had four stars on the right wing with Delguy also starting three times on the left wing. Competition for the right wing was fierce with five starting players; in comparison, Mateo Carreras started nine times on the left wing and Delguy the other three times.

Four players started at inside center and three at outside center. Santiago Chocobares and Lucio Cinti was the most used combination; individually they started in eight test matches each. Matías Moroni had two starts at inside center, three at outside center and two on the right wing. Benjamín Elizalde toured but remains uncapped. He looms as El Nuevo Moroni in 2025 and beyond.

ARGENTINA – 2024 MOST COMMON SELECTIONS

1 Thomas Gallo
2 Julián Montoya (capt.)
3 Joel Sclavi
4 Franco Molina
5 Pedro Rubiolo
6 Pablo Matera
7 Marcos Kremer
8 Joaquín Oviedo
9 Gonzalo Bertranou
10 Tomás Albornoz
11 Mateo Carreras
12 Santiago Chocobares
13 Lucio Cinti
14 Bautista Delguy
15 Juan Cruz Mallía

ARGENTINA – 2024 ALL LINEUPS

vs
FRANCE vs ARGENTINA (PARIS, FR)
1 Thomas Gallo, 2 Julián Montoya (capt.), 3 Joel Sclavi, 4 Guido Petti, 5 Pedro Rubiolo, 6 Pablo Matera (vice-capt), 7 Juan Martín González, 8 Joaquín Oviedo, 9 Gonzalo Garcia, 10 Tomás Albornoz, 11 Bautista Delguy, 12 Matías Moroni 13 Lucio Cinti, 14 Rodrigo Isgró, 15 Juan Cruz Mallía (vice-capt.)

Replacements: 16 Ignacio Ruiz, 17 Ignacio Calles, 18 Francisco Gómez Kodela, 19 Franco Molina, 20 Marcos Kremer, 21 Lautaro Bazán Vélez, 22 Santiago Carreras, 23 Mateo Carreras

vs
IRELAND vs ARGENTINA (DUBLIN, IE)
1 Thomas Gallo, 2 Julián Montoya (capt.), 3 Joel Sclavi, 4 Guido Petti, 5 Pedro Rubiolo, 6 Pablo Matera (vice-capt.), 7 Juan Martín González, 8 Joaquín Oviedo, 9 Gonzalo Bertranou, 10 Tomás Albornoz, 11 Bautista Delguy, 12 Matías Moroni 13 Lucio Cinti, 14 Rodrigo Isgró, 15 Juan Cruz Mallía (vice-capt.)

Replacements: 16 Ignacio Ruiz, 17 Ignacio Calles, 18 Francisco Gómez Kodela, 19 Franco Molina, 20 Santiago Grondona, 21 Gonzalo García, 22 Santiago Carreras, 23 Justo Piccardo

vs
ITALY vs ARGENTINA (UDINE, IT)
1 Thomas Gallo, 2 Julián Montoya (capt.), 3 Joel Sclavi, 4 Franco Molina, 5 Pedro Rubiolo, 6 Juan Martín González (vice-capt.), 7 Santiago Grondona, 8 Joaquín Oviedo, 9 Gonzalo Bertranou, 10 Tomás Albornoz, 11 Bautista Delguy, 12 Matías Orlando, 13 Lucio Cinti, 14 Rodrigo Isgró, 15 Juan Cruz Mallía (vice-capt.)

Replacements: 16 Ignacio Ruiz, 17 Ignacio Calles, 18 Francisco Gómez Kodela, 19 Matías Alemanno, 20 Bautista Pedemonte, 21 Gonzalo Garcia, 22 Matías Moroni, 23 Santiago Cordero

vs
SOUTH AFRICA vs ARGENTINA (NELSPRUIT, ZA)
1 Thomas Gallo, 2 Julián Montoya (capt.), 3 Joel Sclavi, 4 Pedro Rubiolo, 5 Tomás Lavanini, 6 Juan Martín González (vice-capt.), 7 Santiago Grondona, 8 Joaquín Oviedo, 9 Gonzalo García, 10 Tomás Albornoz, 11 Mateo Carreras, 12 Santiago Chocobares, 13 Matías Moroni, 14 Rodrigo Isgró, 15 Santiago Carreras (vice-capt.)

Replacements: 16 Ignacio Ruiz, 17 Ignacio Calles, 18 Pedro Delgado, 19 Franco Molina, 20 Pablo Matera, 21 Lautaro Bazán Vélez, 22 Lucio Cinti, 23 Juan Cruz Mallía

vs
ARGENTINA vs SOUTH AFRICA (SANTIAGO DEL ESTERO, AR)
1 Thomas Gallo, 2 Julián Montoya (capt.), 3 Joel Sclavi, 4 Franco Molina, 5 Pedro Rubiolo, 6 Pablo Matera (vice-capt.), 7 Marcos Kremer, 8 Joaquín Oviedo, 9 Gonzalo Bertranou, 10 Tomás Albornoz, 11 Mateo Carreras, 12 Santiago Chocobares, 13 Lucio Cinti, 14 Bautista Delguy, 15 Juan Cruz Mallía (vice-capt.)

Replacements: 16 Ignacio Ruiz, 17 Ignacio Calles, 18 Pedro Delgado, 19 Guido Petti, 20 Juan Martín González, 21 Gonzalo García, 22 Santiago Carreras, 23 Matías Moroni

vs
ARGENTINA vs AUSTRALIA (SANTA FE, AR)
1 Thomas Gallo, 2 Julián Montoya (capt.), 3 Joel Sclavi, 4 Guido Petti, 5 Tomás Lavanini, 6 Pablo Matera (vice-capt.), 7 Marcos Kremer, 8 Juan Martín González, 9 Gonzalo Bertranou, 10 Tomás Albornoz, 11 Mateo Carreras, 12 Santiago Chocobares, 13 Lucio Cinti, 14 Bautista Delguy, 15 Juan Cruz Mallía (vice-capt.)

Replacements: 16 Ignacio Ruiz, 17 Mayco Vivas, 18 Eduardo Bello, 19 Franco Molina, 20 Joaquín Oviedo, 21 Santiago Grondona, 22 Gonzalo García, 23 Santiago Carreras

vs
ARGENTINA vs AUSTRALIA (LA PLATA, AR)
1 Thomas Gallo, 2 Julián Montoya (capt.), 3 Joel Sclavi, 4 Franco Molina, 5 Pedro Rubiolo, 6 Pablo Matera (vice-capt.), 7 Marcos Kremer, 8 Juan Martín González, 9 Gonzalo Bertranou, 10 Santiago Carreras, 11 Mateo Carreras, 12 Santiago Chocobares, 13 Lucio Cinti, 14 Santiago Cordero, 15 Juan Cruz Mallía (vice-capt.)

Replacements: 16 Agustín Creevy, 17 Mayco Vivas, 18 Eduardo Bello, 19 Guido Petti, 20 Tomás Lavanini, 21 Santiago Grondona, 22 Gonzalo García, 23 Tomás Albornoz

vs
NEW ZEALAND vs ARGENTINA (AUCKLAND, NZ)
1 Thomas Gallo, 2 Julián Montoya (capt.), 3 Lucio Sordoni, 4 Marcos Kremer, 5 Pedro Rubiolo, 6 Pablo Matera, 7 Juan Martín González, 8 Joaquín Oviedo, 9 Gonzalo Bertranou, 10 Santiago Carreras, 11 Mateo Carreras, 12 Santiago Chocobares, 13 Lucio Cinti, 14 Matías Moroni, 15 Juan Cruz Mallía

Replacements: 16 Ignacio Ruiz, 17 Mayco Vivas, 18 Joel Sclavi, 19 Franco Molina, 20 Tomás Lavanini, 21 Lautaro Bazán Vélez, 22 Tomás Albornoz, 23 Bautista Delguy

vs
NEW ZEALAND VS ARGENTINA (WELLINGTON, NZ)
1 Thomas Gallo, 2 Ignacio Ruiz, 3 Eduardo Bello, 4 Franco Molina, 5 Pedro Rubiolo, 6 Pablo Matera (capt.), 7 Marcos Kremer, 8 Juan Martín González, 9 Gonzalo Bertranou, 10 Santiago Carreras, 11 Mateo Carreras, 12 Santiago Chocobares, 13 Lucio Cinti, 14 Matías Moroni, 15 Juan Cruz Mallía

Replacements: 16 Agustín Creevy, 17 Mayco Vivas, 18 Joel Sclavi, 19 Tomás Lavanini, 20 Efraín Elías, 21 Joaquín Oviedo, 22 Lautaro Bazán Vélez, 23 Tomás Albornoz

vs
URUGUAY vs ARGENTINA (PUNTA DEL ESTE, UY)
1 Thomas Gallo, 2 Ignacio Ruiz, 3 Eduardo Bello, 4 Franco Molina, 5 Pedro Rubiolo, 6 Joaquín Moro, 7 Marcos Kremer (capt.), 8 Joaquín Oviedo, 9 Gonzalo Bertranou, 10 Tomás Albornoz, 11 Mateo Carreras, 12 Jerónimo de la Fuente, 13 Santiago Chocobares, 14 Ignacio Mendy, 15 Santiago Cordero

Replacements: 16 Ignacio Calles, 17 Mayco Vivas, 18 Francisco Coria Marchetti, 19 Matías Alemanno, 20 Pablo Matera, 21 Gonzalo García, 22 Santiago Carreras, 23 Matías Orlando

vs
ARGENTINA vs FRANCE (BUENOS AIRES, AR)
1 Mayco Vivas, 2 Julián Montoya (capt.), 3 Eduardo Bello, 4 Franco Molina, 5 Lucas Paulos, 6 Pablo Matera, 7 Marcos Kremer, 8 Joaquín Oviedo, 9 Lautaro Bazán Vélez, 10 Santiago Carreras, 11 Mateo Carreras, 12 Santiago Chocobares, 13 Matías Moroni, 14 Bautista Delguy, 15 Santiago Cordero

Replacements: 16 Ignacio Ruiz, 17 Thomas Gallo, 18 Lucio Sordoni, 19 Matías Alemanno, 20 Pedro Rubiolo, 21 Gonzalo Bertranou, 22 Tomás Albornoz, 23 Matías Orlando

ARGENTINA vs FRANCE (MENDOZA, AR)
1 Thomas Gallo, Julián Montoya (capt.), 3 Eduardo Bello, 4 Matías Alemanno, 5 Lucas Paulos, 6 Pablo Matera, 7 Marcos Kremer, 8 Joaquín Oviedo, 9 Gonzalo Bertranou, 10 Santiago Carreras, 11 Mateo Carreras, 12 Jerónimo de la Fuente, 13 Matías Moroni, 14 Bautista Delguy, 15 Martín Bogado

Replacements: 16 Ignacio Ruiz, 17 Mayco Vivas, 18 Lucio Sordoni, 19 Franco Molina, 20 Bautista Pedemonte, 21 Lautaro Bazán Vélez, 22 Tomás Albornoz, 23 Matías Orlando