Dave Rennie: Keen to face international competition
Related links
Teams
Also see
The Chiefs are set to play the Pumas in Argentina during their mid-season break in next year's Super Rugby competition.
Although nothing has been finalised, the Argentina Rugby Union are keen to fund a 10-day visit from the Super Rugby champions as the Pumas are seeking a match ahead of two home Tests against England.
The match has been scheduled for Buenos Aires on the weekend of round 16 of Super Rugby, when the Chiefs have a bye.
The tournament goes into a hiatus for the following three weeks to cater for the June Test window.
The All Blacks will play a home series against France during that time and Chiefs players called up to Steve Hansen's squad will not be available for the trip to Argentina.
Chiefs coach Dave Rennie is worried that his other players will be out of action for an entire month.
"The bye was a chance to go to Argentina and give the Pumas a bit of a hit-out and the chance for our boys to play an international side," Rennie told New Zealand's Sunday Star-Times.
"We'll take most of the main squad, barring a few broken guys and the All Blacks, and maybe a couple of extra guys from our development squad. It's a bit of a carrot for those guys."
The Pumas' best players are based in Europe and won't play in the match.
The Chiefs will effectively take on a second-string national team which will be similar to the side that beat France in one of two Tests earlier this year.
Rennie's men are set to leave the day after their clash with the Crusaders on May 24, and arrive back five days before New Zealand's first Test against France at Eden Park.
That time-frame means that the majority of the Chiefs squad will be given 12 days rest. Another local match against a combined Counties Manukau and Bay of Plenty team is being lined up.
"We're still keen to have one more hit-out in that three week window to make sure we're ready to go," added Rennie.
Comments
gilbertpas says...
JayStarr the Argies are playing against Georgia in june test 2013
Posted 13:33 31st December 2012
passtheball says...
JayStarr - the teams you mention (apart from Georgia and to some extent Fiji) are full of NZ born players and many of them play in Europe or elsewhere now, if not in the S15. They probably couldn't assemble a team mid season due to club commitments anyway. The "game" has changed as the PI teams have got much stronger from their players coaching in the NZ school and rugby systems.
Posted 11:29 31st December 2012
ferdie says...
Jaystarr - Argentina have the RC matches v NZ and SA, 2 tests v England, 1 test v Georgia in 2013.
Samoa already have tests 8, 15, 22 June (v Scot, Italy, SA), and Fiji/Tonga would be hugely under-strength unless every player got a release from UK/Europe (as if, the can't manage it for RWC). Japan - not ideal test preparation for England imo.
This match v Chiefs will not be an international fixture, and Arg XV v the Chiefs XV - both sides not full strength as article mentions, maybe they believe they will get more from that challenge than the ones you suggested, and they want it pre the English tests.
They're not in it for charity also, as they're paying the costs sure they want a full stadium.
Posted 11:15 31st December 2012
JayStarr says...
How about inviting Samoa, Tonga, Fiji, Japan, Georgia, etc. etc. ? If the Argentina rugby union are funding it, how about returning the favours they've been shown and give an opportunity to an emerging nation?
Posted 18:25 30th December 2012