The Jaguars (Los Jaguares) have officially been unveiled as Argentina's Vodacom Super Rugby franchise that will compete in the tournament from 2016.
The franchise, who are competition newcomers alongside the Kings and Sunwolves, named hooker Agustín Creevy as the captain and Raúl Pérez as head coach, while Felipe Contepomi will serve as assistant coach.
Greg Peters, the Argentine Rugby Union's general manager, also confirmed the squad is made up entirely of homegrown players.
'There will be no foreign players in Los Jaguares,' Peters said on Wednesday. 'It is incredible what Argentina rugby has done in the past years.'
It was also confirmed that while 30 players have already signed contracts with the franchise, the squad will be expanded to 45 players before the start of the new season.
Pérez says that while he's happy with his new role, he fully understands his duties and responsibilities.
'I have to manage exceptional players in the best club competition in the world. We are aware of the challenge ahead that holds to major aspects. On the one hand, there is great experience to be achieved by everyone involved. On the other hand, there is the adaptation, not only in rugby performance, but also with regard to travelling, rest and player management, which is a crucial issue.'
As to performance on the field, Perez stipulated that, like Los Pumas, they'll be willing to take risks: 'Super Rugby provides a scenario to be more risky in attack. The focus will be, as it is with all teams in this competition, on the greater willingness to keep and use the ball. We have top level players who have demonstrated that taking those risks with the ball is possible and that makes us very optimistic,' said Pérez.
The team will be based in Buenos Aires and will play at the 49,540-capacity José Amalfitani Stadium.
Jaguars squad – Matías Alemanno, Gabriel Ascárate, Rodrigo Báez, Emiliano Boffelli, Santiago Cordero, Agustín Creevy, Juan Cruz Guillemaín, Jerónimo de la Fuente, Santiago García Botta, Santiago González Iglesias, Ramiro Herrera, Facundo Isa, Martín Landajo, Tomás Lavanini, Tomás Lezana, Juan Manuel Leguizamón, Juan Martín Hernández, Manuel Montero, Julián Montoya, Matías Moroni, Ramiro Moyano, Lucas Noguera Paz, Matías Orlando, Javier Ortega Desio, Guido Petti, Nicolás Sánchez, Leonardo Senatore, Nahuel Tetaz Chaparro, Joaquín Tuculet.
