Argentina rugby captain Agustin Creevy revealed Friday a plan for fielding a full-strength international side when they join the southern hemisphere’s prestigious Super Rugby club competition in 2016.
The move would rob European clubs of several leading players but would strengthen Argentina at Test level.
Super rugby organisers have already confirmed an Argentinian side will join the competition when it is expanded to 18 teams as the International Rugby Board pushes to expand the sport in South America.
Creevy said Argentina’s vision was to keep all their top players together rather than continue with the fragmented situation they currently face.
Head coach Daniel Hourcade “wants us to play all the year together,” Creevy said on the eve of Argentina’s Rugby Championship Test against the All Blacks.
“It is going to be very, very, important because all the members of the team are going to know each other better by playing all year together and we are going to profit as a team.”
More than half of the Argentina squad playing in New Zealand are overseas based, including Creevy who is with the England side Worcester.
A return home to play Super rugby would eliminate their current clashes between club and Test commitments, and Creevy said the benefits would likely outweigh any financial loss from giving up their lucrative European contracts.
“It’s going to be a dream to play Super rugby. It’s something I want,” he said.
“Even though I have not talked to the (Argentina Rugby) Union about the conditions to play Super rugby I will support the idea to be there.”
But Creevy hedged on how powerful Argentina, currently the 12th ranked side in the world, would become if the squad was together all year round for a year before the 2019 World Cup.
“First we are thinking of the game tomorrow, then next year the (2015) World Cup. Even though we can probably say the team will be fine for 2019 first we have a World Cup next year.”