Veteran Moroni earns Pumas start - Argentina name team to play Samoa
Argentina head coach Michael Cheika has named his match-day 23 to face Samoa in Pool D at Stade Geoffroy-Guichard in Saint-Étienne on Friday, 22 September.
Experienced back Matías Moroni is one of three changes for Argentina as head coach Michael Cheika announces his match-day 23 to face Samoa in Pool D at Stade Geoffroy-Guichard in Saint-Étienne on Friday.
1 Thomas Gallo
2 Julian Montoya (c)
3 Eduardo Bello
4 Guido Petti Pagadizabal
5 Matias Alemanno
6 Pablo Matera
7 Marcos Kremer
8 Juan Martin Gonzalez
9 Gonzalo Bertranou
10 Santiago Carreras
11 Mateo Carreras
12 Santiago Chocobares
13 Matías Moroni
14 Emiliano Boffelli
15 Juan Cruz Mallia
Replacements:
16 Agustín Creevy
17 Mayco Vivas
18 Francisco Gómez Kodela
19 Pedro Rubiolo
20 Rodrigo Bruni
21 Tomas Cubelli
22 Nicolas Sanchez
23 Lucio Cinti
- Head coach Michael Cheika has made just three changes to his starting XV from the team that lost 27-10 against England in the opening round, with Eduardo Bello coming into the front-row, Guido Petti into the second-row, and Matías Moroni into the midfield.
- Matías Moroni earns just his third start of 2023, after playing four of his six tests off the bench. He is the only player to have played in all six tests this year for Los Pumas, despite only two of these caps coming in the run-on team.
- If used off the bench, Agustín Creevy will move to second all-time in appearances alongside Felipe Contepomi and Juan Martin Fernandez Lobbe in his 17th Rugby World Cup match. Only Mario Ledesma Arocena has played more Rugby World Cup games for Los Pumas with 18 between 1999 and 2011.
- Pablo Matera has started more tests for Argentina than any other player, earning 91 of his 96 caps in the starting XV. He generated much of Los Pumas' attack against England, with five defenders beaten, and 44 metres past the gain-line from the joint-most carries (11).
- Nicolas Sanchez has played just 114 minutes of test rugby this season, and will earn his 99th test cap if used off the bench. He is Argentina’s most capped back-line player, and their all-time leading point-scorer (863).
- Julian Montoya did not miss a tackle against England, completing all 10 attempts.