It will be the first time for a Test match to be played in Patagonia and Puerto Madryn is the city named after the founding father of the Welsh immigrants who landed in 1865, Sir Love Jones-Parry of Madryn.
“We have been invited to play the first game of our two match tour outside of Buenos Aires and we are delighted to be playing for the first time in Patagonia. It will be a unique opportunity for the Welsh team to play in the Welsh colony and we will now be viewing it as a home fixture,” said Phillips. “The British Ambassador to Argentina, Dr John Hughes, has played a major role in smoothing the way for the game to be played in Puerto Madryn and my role over the next few days is to check out the venue, the hotels and travel arrangements.
“We are still negotiating the exact kick-off details, but I have been assured that the 12,500 capacity stadium is suitable for Test rugby. This will be an important tour for the team because the Pumas are a strong unit and Wales will have a new coaching team at the helm.
“We need to make sure our preparations are not hampered in any way, although I do think the move to host the game in Puerto Madryn will give all the squad a boost.”
The trip will be the fourth Wales have made to Argentina but some Welsh rugby players have previously played in Patagonia. Jonathan Davies, Ieuan Evans and Carwyn Davies played for a Patagonian team in the Argentinian National Sevens tournament in the late eighties.
“There are strong cultural and emotional links between Wales and Patagonia and it was a fascinating experience playing out there. Having the Andes mountains as a backdrop in a town where people speak Welsh was weird and wonderful,” said Evans. “The Welsh that is spoken there is very pure and quite old fashioned. I’m sure it will be an enriching experience for the Welsh team.”
A group of 153 Welsh settlers arrived in the Chubut province via the tea clippper SS Mimosa from Liverpool on 27 July, 1865, with the aim of setting up a Welsh speaking colony away from the influence of the English. They were granted 100 square miles of land along the Chubut River by the Argentinian government.
It had been the inspiration of the nationalist non-conformist preacher Professor Michael Jones, of Bala, that led to the bold bid to create a “little Wales beyond Wales.” Lewis Jones, after who Trelew, where the Welsh team will be based, is named and Sir Love Jones-Parry, whose estate in Wales gave its name to Puerto Madryn, were the advanced guard and they declared the area suitably remote and desolate to establish a stand alone colony.
“This is a hugely exciting announcement both for Wales and for Welsh descendents living in Patagonia,” said the First Minister, Rhodri Morgan.
“It is 140 years since the first Welsh settlers set foot on Patagonian soil at Puerto Madryn and playing the first test match against Argentina is a fitting tribute to the grit and determination of those early pioneers.
“The people of Patagonia have kept Welsh traditions alive for a century and a half and I know they will be jubilant when they hear that one of Wales’s greatest sporting traditions is to be brought to their doorstep. I would also like to say a big thank-you to His Excellency John Hughes, British Ambassador to Argentina who’s strong support for Wales playing in Patagonia has now seen this event come to fruition.”
Alejandro Risler, President of UAR, added: “It’s a policy of the Argentine Rugby Union’s Council to take the Pumas to different places in our country. We’ve played Tests in other provinces, such as Salta, Cordoba and Tucuman, and now it is time to go to Chubut. After looking at the stadium, pitch and hotel facilities the Council accepted the proposal of the Chubut union to stage the game. This means that for the first time in our history we will be playing in Patagonia.”
Sun June 11:
1st Test – Argentina v Wales (Puerto Madryn, kick-off TBC – live on S4C)
Sat June 17:
2nd Test -Argentina v Wales (Beunos Aires, kick-off TBC – live on BBC Wales)
