Since their dramatic qualification for the World Cup in August last year, the Chilean rugby team has been much talked about, right up to the Rodrigo Fernández-assisted try against the United States and in the pouring rain at the Santa Laura Stadium Voted Best of 2022 by World Rugby.
The “landing” of the “Condors” in France was also very remarkable, as of the 20 teams taking part in the Oval World Cup, the Chilean XV is the only debutant in this tournament.
And in the first game, which was a 42-12 defeat against a team with more experience, a better level and many foreign reinforcements like Japan, Chile was praised for its pride and daring throughout the game.
In the ideal team
One of the most outstanding players against the Japanese was scrum-half Marcelo Torrealba, who was chosen by the specialist media Tight Five Rugby in the ideal team for the first date, ahead of stars in this position such as the French Antoine Dupont and the South African Faf de Klerk.
This ideal team includes Englishman George Ford, who scored 27 points in the Rosa team’s victory over Argentina.
He also highlighted the work of full-back Iñaki Ayarza, who played a key role in Chile’s first try and appeared in statistics site UltimateRugby.com’s ideal team.
The “Condors” will play their second game this Saturday, September 16, against another very difficult rival, such as the team from Samoa, which is in 11th place in the world rugby rankings.
