Hernandez: Pumasclawing back the gap

The story goes that Juan Martin Hernandez could have been a professional soccer player had he twisted his neck and glanced down a different road.

After all, his uncle Patricio was a squad midfielder at the 1982 World Cup and his attempts at sexy rugby across the last decade lend lead weight to the notion of being gifted. Indeed, at a press conference on Tuesday, Marcos Ayerza said of his teammate, “He could play any sport, he could play ping pong in the hotel and be brilliant.”

But as it turns out, it’s just that. A story. Others may look up vertically to the 30-year-old, but he just sits and shrugs his shoulders when the suggestion of a different and more glamorous career path is put to him. “No, no, I just played a little soccer when I was younger. My uncle was a coach after he finished playing and I did some training with him. But that was it. It was always rugby.” That’s the end of it as anything brash or flash is saved for the field. Here it’s all about understatement and there’s no burning down the house to get the flies out of the kitchen.