Second-half tries by Santiago Medrano and Segundo Tuclet on Saturday powered defending champions Argentina over Canada 20-6, while the US edged Uruguay 29-23 in Americas Rugby Championship openers.
The US and Argentina joined Brazil, 17-3 winners over Chile in Friday’s first match of the Six Nations-styled tournament, atop the table.
Snow frustrated scoring for Argentina and Canada in the first half in suburban Victoria, Canada, with Canada captain Gordon McRorie and Argentina’s Domingo Miotti exchanging early penalty kicks for a 3-3 halftime deadlock.
However, Medrano put Argentina ahead to stay with his 50th-minute try, grabbing and touching down a grubber-kick from Miotti.
“The team was very excited,” Argentina captain Lautaro Bavaro said of the match played in frigid, snowy weather.
McRorie, a 28-year-old Hong Kong-born scrumhalf, hit another penalty-kick in the 62nd minute.
However, second-half substitute Tuclet, who made an appearance for Argentina’s Super Rugby Jaguares last season, boosted the visitors’ lead to 17-6 with a 67th-minute try and Miotti added another penalty-kick with five minutes remaining to finish the scoring.
In San Antonio, Texas, US captain Blaine Scully scored the go-ahead try in the 61st minute as the US held off Uruguay.
Scully, a 28-year-old winger for the Pro 12 Cardiff Blues, collected a kick from Will Magie out of a US maul in the corner of the try zone and the hosts never trailed again.
Scully’s try put the Eagles ahead 26-23, while Irish-born A.J. MacGinty added a final penalty-kick in the 66th minute to give the US their final victory margin.
However, it did not come easily. MacGinty, a flyhalf for English Premiership side Sale Sharks, missed penalty-kick attempts in the 69th and 78th minute and the Eagles had to stop a late driving maul by Argentina to complete the triumph.
“We knew it would be tough, tight and physical, which is about what it was,” Scully said. “It was pretty inaccurate from us at times, but I’m really proud of the guys for digging in and stopping the driving maul, which we really struggled with for the 80 minutes.”
Uruguay opened the scoring in the fourth minute on German Albanell’s penalty-kick, but Ben Cima answered for the Eagles in the next minute to level at 3-3.
In the 16th minute, Uruguay’s Facundo Gattas dove for a try that put Uruguay up 10-3.
Cima responded with penalty-kicks in the 22nd and 31st minutes and the US seized the lead in the 38th, when MacGinty ran through a gap and offloaded to Bryce Campbell, who scored the try to put the Eagles on top 16-10.
Albanell added a late penalty-kick to pull Uruguay within 16-13 at halftime and the Los Teros moved back into the lead in the 46th minute on Uruguay captain Alejandro Nieto’s try.
Albanell and MacGinty then exchanged penalty-kicks, setting the stage for Scully’s late heroics.
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