WXV: Sao Paulo Pumas

[CrowsFan]

Booooooo!

Well that's just rude. The Pumas were going to go in to the round 10 match against the Samurai playing it as just another game, but with this disrespect shown to the coach they are now looking forward to giving them a big thumping! Word of advice... bring some ice packs!

[Purple 77]

Booooooo!

Well that's just rude. The Pumas were going to go in to the round 10 match against the Samurai playing it as just another game, but with this disrespect shown to the coach they are now looking forward to giving them a big thumping! Word of advice... bring some ice packs!

You'll bring the Honey :P

[Ringo]

Can you ensure you bring some Royal Honey when you play the Royals.

[CrowsFan]

So we are actually going to resort to making jokes about bringing honey now?

[Nige]

So we are actually going to resort to making jokes about bringing honey now?

Not sure about the others, but I won't be badgering you about the name anymore.  ;)

[kilbluff1985]

So we are actually going to resort to making jokes about bringing honey now?

i don't want your honey honey i want your love

lame i know lol

[elephants]

So we are actually going to resort to making jokes about bringing honey now?

Any enemy of the Puma's is an enemy of the Tigers. #BigCats #NDT-SPPalliance

[kilbluff1985]

Samurai eat cats for dinner :)

[elephants]

Haha that is probably true so I'll pay that :P

[Ringo]

So we are actually going to resort to making jokes about bringing honey now?

Sorry HB but could not resist the pun on Honey and Royals.  Apologies if it offended,  And see I am slowly getting used to HB.

[kilbluff1985]

CrowsFan ;)

[CrowsFan]

Round 1 - Pumas Burnt by Scorching Suns

Sao Paulo Pumas (21.12.138) lost to Mexico City Suns (24.13.157)

Best
Sao Paulo: G Ablett jnr, Ja Roughead, S Jacobs, R Sloane
Mexico City: B Goddard, N Riewoldt, A Sandilands, J Bartel, B Vince, B Ebert

It was billed as the match of the round. A rematch of last years epic grand final in the first round of the season, played on neutral turf. What more could you ask for? Sadly you could have asked the Pumas to show up to make it a contest. Fresh from the preseason grand final win over the Tigers just last week it could be argued that the Pumas were too cocky, too brash and certainly too complacent against a strong Suns side that was out for revenge.

Insipid, uninspiring, and lackluster are how you could describe the Puma outfit this week, putting in a miserable performance, one of their worst in the history of the comp. The Suns on the other hand oozed class, barely putting a foot wrong all game to come away with a comfortable 19 point win. There were some positives however from the match; Ablett proved he is still the number 1 player in the game and will again be vital to the Pumas chances, whilst Roughy and Gunston demonstrated their forward partnership is going to blossom. Finally Sam Jacobs looks ready to fight for the number 1 ruck spot against last years best and fairest Minson, who was missing from this game after an interrupted preseason. However the negatives far outweighed the good. The whole defense was a shambles, which was made worse by the fact that Walker picked up a 1 match suspension and so we will be without him against the tough Spetsnaz next week. And the midfielders just couldn't get enough of the ball to cause problems to the opposition.

A tough few weeks coming up for the Pumas, which will show just what they are really made of. Is the premiership hangover in full effect already?

Reserves
Rio de Janeiro Jaguars (15.7.97) defeated Mexico City Suns (13.12.90)

Best
Rio de Janeiro: J Polec
Mexico City: M Baguley, T Curren

Some more positive news from the reserves after a 7 point win against the Suns. Jared Polec is looking like a new man this year after being hampered with injuries last season and was best on ground today. It will be tough for him to crack in to a strong Puma midfield, but consistent performances may see him get his chance early on. New recruits to the club Paparone and Stringer put in solid efforts in their debuts for the Jaguars, and both could be pushing for that final spot in the forward line if they continue to work hard during training.

[CrowsFan]

Round 2 - Premiership Flag Unveiling Soured by Defeat

Sao Paulo Pumas (20.13.133) lost to Moscow Spetsnaz (20.20.140)

Best
Sao Paulo: H Hartlett, G Ablett, C Masten, D Smith, B Houli, R Sloane, S Hill
Moscow: S May, C Ward, D Martin, N Naitanui, L Dunn, T Vickery, J Frawley

It was the first home match of the season after winning the premiership last year and a chance to show off the trophy to the Puma faithful. Sadly that was the only positive from the weekend after the Pumas limped to one of their worst scores in WXV history, losing to Moscow by 7 points. Despite some admiral performances by the senior members in the team there were some shockers by others with skill errors for all to see. It's a worrying beginning to the season and hopefully the form will pick up soon, but at the moment the Pumas appear to be toothless, with the coach scratching his head to try and figure out where the improvement will come from. Jake Stringer made his debut for the Pumas in this match and showed some promise, but has competition from a few players to try and keep his spot in the team.

We move on to Berlin next week, where last time these two teams met (also in round 3 last year) a 314 point beauty ensued. The Pumas picked up the win 160-154, but look a far cry of emulating such highs at the moment. All we can hope for is a marked improvement from the first two rounds.


Reserves
Rio de Janeiro Jaguars (11.5.71) defeated Siberian Wolverines (7.3.45)

Best
Rio de Janeiro: W Minson, J Polec
Siberia: D Fletcher, C Sinclair

The Jaguars continue to impress despite the failings of the Pumas. Will Minson was inspiring and is ready to move back into the Pumas side to add some much needed strength in the middle, whilst Polec was again impressive and is edging ever closer to making his debut for the Pumas after being at the club for just over a season. It may even be this week against the Brewers.

[ossie85]

Berlin are missing a bunch of players -including Fyfe, Steven and Crouch - leaving Wells as their big mid. Lose to them and alarm bells will sound!

[Nails]

Meanwhile the Buenos Aires Armadillos are watching from the distance praying the Pumas go 0-3