<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Melhor Time @ Oct 3 2009, 07:43 PM)
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Fantastic post, muchos gracias. I agree with all of it. I think Agulla is a good fullback but given Argentina's lack of wingers I think he should play wing. Argentina have Camacho as a new young and very good looking wing. Borges is passed his best and is not likely to be their for the World Cup. Rafael Carballo is not playing in France anymore. He is supposed to be signing to play in New Zealand but nothing confirmed can be found anywhere on the internet. Aramburu is playing in the French second division now and is, at best, back up to Borges and Carballo. he is not a centre. Tiesi is far superior, and hopefully, Viazzo will be picked ahead of him. Mauro Comuzzi is playing well in the URBA compeition and will be in the Pumas squad. I think he is very good. Amorisino is not a wing, but is a fullback who can cover flyhalf. He is a certainty to play on the bench. His form is promising most of all because he is playing well at centre rather than wing.
Dr. Felipe Contepomi is recovering still and is a few weeks away from debuting for Toulon. He will not be in the Pumas for November. Possibly only for the final test vs Scotland. It is too much of an ask to play in the earlier two vs England and Wales. Santiago Fernandez and Marcelo Bosch will be the options. Its too hard not to pick Fernandez at 12 after his great match vs England in Salta.
About Hernandez playing for Natal Sharks, I think that he looks better because of the game plan. Stade Francais liked to use him as a kicker more than anything else. He was under instructions last season from Ewen McKenzie to kick the ball into the sky at all opportunities. Thats nto how they play in South Africa, which is why is was happy to take a pay cut and go there. He will be epic in Super 14. Dan Carter and Matt Giteau will at long last have a quality flyhalf to play against in South Africa.
My selection for England is:
14 Agulla 15 Bosch 11 Camacho
13 Tiesi, 12 Fernandez
10 Hernandez, 9 Lalanne
20 Figuerola
21 Comuzzi
22 Amorisino
No need for a flyhalf on the bench as Fernandez / Bosch can cover Hernandez. Its a balanced team with attacking flair and kicking options at 10, 12 and 15. The backs are lighter than traditionally but I don't see any issue in this.
Nico Vergallo is third choice scrumhalf now and may not even make the squad. Viazzo sould though.
Forwards are self explanatory based on the Salta test and current form:
7 Leguizamon, 8 Fernandez Lobbe, 6 Fessia
5 Albacete, 4 Carizza
3 Ayerza, 2 Ledesma, 1 Roncero
16 Vernet Basualdo
17 Figallo
18 Lozada
19 Campos[/b]
De nada amigo. 
I am glad we think alike about Argentina's back line. If you have a thorough look at it, you can see why we're no longer a team that limits itself to just fielding hard nosed-forwards. We have some seriously talented backs now, and moreover, they are versatile and
young -- which is a critical point in my eyes because Felipe Contepomi is aging and we can't afford to rely too much on him.
Lalanne: We finally have found our first choice scrum-half. This was a position we had been having problems with ever since Gus retired. Neither Figuerola nor Vergallo performed well in their first tests, but Lalanne showed great decision making and gave our backline quality ball to toy with.
Hernandez: His confidence is boosting up after a streak of good games for the Natal Sharks. If he brings his A game to Los Pumas, then we'll always have an edge over the opposite team.
Camacho: Fresh talent, this guy is explosive and performed very well against the French Barbarians in Vélez.
Fernández: Santiago is improving on leaps and bounds. I've had the chance to watch him unfold his wide range of skills for Hindú at first hand, and he is quite a complete player, perfectly capable of playing either #12 or #10.
Tiesi: An explosive centre, with deceptive turn of pace, and terrific defense. He's been unfortunate in the past with so many injuries but his time has come; and with Viazzo around that's one area less to worry about.
Agulla: Great winger, capable of playing fullback -- which is a bonus: we need wingers that are reliable under the high ball, in case we face a team that employs the boot too much.
Bosch: His performance against Perpignan speaks for itself. Just give him a couple more games to develop his game even more!
Your selection regarding the forward pack is flawless, and I agree with all of it.
Back row: Lobbe and Legui will switch roles as the game goes on. Leguizamon has worked on his inconsistency at the breakdown and is not a penalty machine anymore, and his running game is of the best 8's in the world. Lobbe is quite an underrated player... good at the lineout, quick in the turnover and ferocious in defense. Genaro Fessia is going to be the first choice blindside flanker, that's for sure. His physicality and fitness are quite remarkable.
Second row: This is the only area I'm slightly worried about. Albacete was the best lock in the TOP14, and his monstruous work rate and lineout dominance are beyond question. But the problem is... who will cover #4? Carizza is good, but he hasn't had many games to prove himself... and besides him, I don't see anybody else who could be first choice #4 material (maybe Lozada). Then again, all he needs is more minutes on the pitch and the issue will be sorted out swiftly.
Front row: Explosive and world class. With Ayerza being able to play at either side of Ledesma, and Roncero's taste for defense and hard tackling, we're good to go. Ledesma is class, but he's 36 and I'm unsure as to whether he'll make it to the next RWC -- but we've got Vernet Basualdo to cover him.
The team is finally shaping up and I'm looking forward to seeing them in action.
