Pablo Bouza (born 9 May 1973) is an Argentine retired

rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In it ...

player and current coach who won 38

caps Caps are flat headgear. Caps or CAPS may also refer to: Science and technology Computing * CESG Assisted Products Service, provided by the U.K. Government Communications Headquarters * Composite Application Platform Suite, by Java Caps, a Ja ...

playing at No 8, flanker or

lock Lock(s) may refer to: Common meanings *Lock and key, a mechanical device used to secure items of importance *Lock (water navigation), a device for boats to transit between different levels of water, as in a canal Arts and entertainment * ''Lock ...

for the Argentine rugby union side. He played club rugby in

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

with

Leeds Carnegie Leeds Carnegie was a brand name used by several sports teams associated with the Carnegie School of Physical Education, now part of Leeds Beckett University. These include: Current * Leeds Carnegie Handball Club Changed name * Leeds Carnegie ...

(formerly Leeds Tykes), who played the 2007-08 season in the top-level Guinness Premiership after winning the

National Division One The RFU Championship is an English rugby union competition comprising twelve clubs. It is the second level of men’s English rugby and is played by both professional and semi-professional players. The competition has existed since 1987, when ...

title in 2006-07. He made his international test debut at the age of 26 on 8 June 1996 against

Uruguay Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...

in a 37–18 victory. He missed out on selection for the 1999 Rugby World Cup, but when selected for the

2003 Rugby World Cup The 2003 Rugby World Cup was the fifth Rugby World Cup. Originally planned to be hosted by India, all games were shifted to Australia following a contractual dispute over ground signage rights between the Indian Rugby Union and Rugby World Cup ...

he scored four tries in two games and was the only forward in the top ten try scorers. Bouza scored nine test tries in his 38 appearances for Argentina. He played for

Duendes Rugby Club Duendes Rugby Club is an Argentine rugby union and field hockey club sited in Rosario, Santa Fe. The rugby team currently plays at Torneo del Litoral, the first division of the Unión de Rugby de Rosario (URR) league system. History Duendes Rug ...

in Rosario, Argentina where he was captain before moving to the English club NEC Harlequins in August 2005 in

. He made only five appearances for the Quins in their promotion winning season. He joined Leeds Tykes for the National Division One 2006/07 season on a one-year deal. He was the Tykes 16th signing of the pre-season and he made his debut against

London Welsh London Welsh Rugby Football Club ( cy, Clwb Rygbi Cymry Llundain) was a rugby union club formed in 1885. Based in Old Deer Park, Richmond-upon-Thames, London Welsh RFC played in the English Premiership in the 2012–13 and 2014–15 seaso ...

on 3 September 2006 at

Headingley Headingley is a suburb of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, approximately two miles out of the city centre, to the north west along the A660 road. Headingley is the location of the Beckett Park campus of Leeds Beckett University and Headingley ...

. He replaced

Chris Murphy Christopher Scott Murphy (born August 3, 1973) is an American lawyer, author, and politician serving as the junior United States senator from Connecticut since 2013. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served in the United States H ...

who had retired. He was the fifth Argentine international in Tykes colours after Octavio Bartolucci, Hernán Senillosa, Diego Albanese and

Martín Schusterman Martin Schusterman (born 13 September 1975 in San Juan, Argentina) is a retired rugby union footballer. His last club was San Isidro Club. His usual position was at flanker. Schusterman started his career in 1997 with San Isidro Club in Argentin ...

. Director of Rugby Stuart Lancaster said at the time: "Pablo is a vastly experienced international second row who will be a great addition to our squad for next season. I have spoken to Dean Richards, his coach last season, regarding his qualities and he has nothing but praise for him both for his ability and his attitude to the game. He will give us good strength in the second row and I am looking forward to having him in our group." For the second straight year, Bouza was a member of the team that earned promotion to the Guinness Premiership.

Coaching

From 2013, he has been the assistant coach for the National senior side under head coach Daniel Hourcade. In 2023, he was announced as Head Coach of

.

References

External links

Leeds profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bouza, Pablo 1973 births Sportspeople from Rosario, Santa Fe Argentine rugby union players Living people Rugby union flankers Rugby union number eights Rugby union locks Harlequin F.C. players Leeds Tykes players Argentina international rugby union players Argentine expatriate sportspeople in England Argentine expatriate rugby union players Expatriate rugby union players in England Argentina international rugby sevens players Male rugby sevens players 2003 Rugby World Cup players