BUENOS AIRES Aug 22 (Reuters) – Pumas flyhalf Juan Martin
Hernandez will miss Saturday’s Rugby Championship home match
against South Africa with a torn leg muscle, the Argentine Rugby
Union (UAR) said on Wednesday.
Hernandez, who kicked two penalties in Argentina’s 27-6
defeat by the Springboks in their tournament debut last weekend,
suffered the injury near the end of an intense training session
in Buenos Aires on Tuesday.
Argentina, playing in the southern hemisphere’s elite
championship for the first time, host South Africa at the
Malvinas Argentinas stadium in the Andean city of Mendoza in the
west of the country (1910 GMT).
The loss of the injury-plagued former Natal Sharks flyhalf
Hernandez is a blow to Pumas coach Santiago Phelan. He had named
a team with just one change from the opening match at Newlands
in Cape Town, bringing in Martin Rodriguez at fullback in place
of Lucas Gonzalez Amorosino.
Phelan will announce a replacement for Hernandez after
Thursday’s training run in Mendoza.
Nicolas Sanchez is a reserve flyhalf but Phelan my opt to
reshuffle his back line with the more experienced Santiago
Fernandez standing in for Hernandez.
(Reporting by Rex Gowar, Editing by Tom Bartlett)
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