Juan Martín Hernández (born August 7, 1982, in

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the Capital city, capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata ...

) is a retired

Argentine Argentines (mistakenly translated Argentineans in the past; in Spanish ( masculine) or ( feminine)) are people identified with the country of Argentina. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Argentines ...

rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a Contact sport#Terminology, close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the Comparison of rugby league and rugby union, two codes of ru ...

player. A mainstay of the Argentina national team '' The Pumas''. He played for the club

Toulon Toulon (, , ; oc, label=Provençal, Tolon , , ) is a city on the French Riviera and a large port on the Mediterranean coast, with a major naval base. Located in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, and the Provence province, Toulon is the ...

in the French

Top 14 The Top 14 () is a professional rugby union club competition that is played in France. Created in 1892, the Top 14 is at the top of the national league system operated by the French National Rugby League, also known by its French initialism o ...

competition. His

2010 File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...

move to Racing brought him back to the city where he had begun his professional career in 2003 with

Stade Français Stade Français Paris Rugby () is a French professional rugby union club based in the 16th arrondissement of Paris. The club plays in the Top 14 domestic league in France and is one of the most successful French clubs of the modern era. The ...

. He has also played in the

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring count ...

Currie Cup The Currie Cup is South Africa's premier domestic rugby union competition, played each winter and spring (June to October), featuring teams representing either entire provinces or substantial regions within provinces. Although it is the premier ...

with the , and was slated to play with the

Sharks Sharks are a group of elasmobranch fish characterized by a cartilaginous skeleton, five to seven gill slits on the sides of the head, and pectoral fins that are not fused to the head. Modern sharks are classified within the clade Selachi ...

Super Rugby Super Rugby is a men's professional rugby union club competition involving teams from Australia, Fiji, New Zealand, and the Pacific Islands. It previously included teams from Argentina, Japan, and South Africa. Building on various Southern Hem ...

, but suffered a back injury that knocked him out of the Super Rugby season. Hernández is a "utility back" capable of playing at fly-half, centre, or fullback, though he generally prefers fly-half. Hernández made his test debut for '' Los Pumas'' against

Paraguay Paraguay (; ), officially the Republic of Paraguay ( es, República del Paraguay, links=no; gn, Tavakuairetã Paraguái, links=si), is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to th ...

in April 2003. Since then he has accumulated over 50 caps for his national team. He retired in April 2018 following a knee injury.

Family

His uncle Patricio Hernández was part of the

football squad for the

1982 FIFA World Cup The 1982 FIFA World Cup was the 12th FIFA World Cup, a quadrennial football tournament for men's senior national teams, and was played in Spain between 13 June and 11 July 1982. The tournament was won by Italy, who defeated West Germany 3–1 i ...

. His sister

María de la Paz Hernández María "Maripi" de la Paz Hernández (born January 11, 1977, in Buenos Aires) is a retired field hockey player from Argentina, who won the silver medal with the national women's hockey team at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney and bronze me ...

, won the silver medal with the Argentina field hockey team at the

2000 Summer Olympics The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad and also known as Sydney 2000 ( Dharug: ''Gadigal 2000''), the Millennium Olympic Games or the Games of the New Millennium, was an international multi-sport event held from ...

, bronze medals at the

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...

and 2008 Summer Olympics and the

World Cup A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the concept i ...

in 2002.

Career

Club

Hernández began his rugby career at the amateur club Deportiva Francesa in

. In 2003, he moved to Paris to play professionally for

, one of the top clubs in France and Europe. He saw considerable success with Stade Français; winning the domestic championship in 2004, as well as being runners-up in the domestic championship and the European

Heineken Cup The European Rugby Champions Cup (known as the Heineken Champions Cup for sponsorship reasons) is an annual rugby union tournament organised by European Professional Club Rugby (EPCR). It is the top-tier competition for clubs who compete in a pre ...

2005 File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; "Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris (dwarf planet), Er ...

. In 2006, he was named fullback of the year. This award has coincided with many commentators naming Hernández as the world's best fullback. On 27 July 2009, Hernández signed with South Africa's KwaZulu-Natal Rugby Union, operator of the in the

and the

in the Super 14, on a one-year contract. He took on a coaching role at the club's academy, helping young players at grass roots level. In December 2009, the French rugby magazine ''

Midi Olympique Midi Olympique is a French bi-weekly newspaper specializing in rugby, belonging to the La Dépêche group and based partly in Toulouse and partly in Paris. The first edition was published on 2 September 1929, meaning it is one of the oldest French ...

'' reported that Hernández had signed a deal with Paris' other Top 14 club, Racing Métro, and would return to France after the

2010 Super 14 season The 2010 Super 14 season kicked off in February 2010 with pre-season matches held from mid-January. It finished on 29 May. The 2010 season was the fifth and last season of the expanded Super 14 format. The schedule, which covers 3½ months, feat ...

. In early January 2010, it was announced that Hernández would be sidelined for at least 6 months following a back operation. He thus played no part in the Sharks 2010 Super 14 campaign.

International

Hernández made his debut for

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, t ...

against

on 27 April 2003. Appearing in the starting line up, he helped the Pumas to a 144–0 victory. Following a further five Tests for Argentina in May, June and August 2003, Hernández was included in Argentina's squad 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 came on in the opening game of the tournament against the

Wallabies A wallaby () is a small or middle-sized macropod native to Australia and New Guinea, with introduced populations in New Zealand, Hawaii, the United Kingdom and other countries. They belong to the same taxonomic family as kangaroos and so ...

, as well as starting in the games against

Namibia Namibia (, ), officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country in Southern Africa. Its western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Zambia and Angola to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and e ...

and

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, a ...

. Following the 2003 World Cup, Hernández next played for Argentina in November 2004, starting against

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

and the

Springboks The South Africa national rugby union team, commonly known as the Springboks (colloquially the Boks, Bokke or Amabokoboko), is the country's national team governed by the South African Rugby Union. The Springboks play in green and gold jersey ...

. He earned another three Test caps on the November tour the following season. He was then capped twice against

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

and once against the

All Blacks The New Zealand national rugby union team, commonly known as the All Blacks ( mi, Ōpango), represents New Zealand in men's international rugby union, which is considered the country's national sport. The team won the Rugby World Cup in 198 ...

. Hernández was unexpectedly picked at outside half for the opening game of the

2007 Rugby World Cup The 2007 Rugby World Cup was the sixth Rugby World Cup, a quadrennial international rugby union competition inaugurated in 1987. Twenty nations competed for the Webb Ellis Cup in the tournament, which was hosted by France from 7 September to ...

against France on 7 September 2007. His scintillating form, particularly with the boot, kept him as first choice in that position during Argentina's run to the semi-finals, and he subsequently scored three

drop goal A drop goal, field goal, or dropped goal is a method of scoring points in rugby union and rugby league and also, rarely, in American football and Canadian football. A drop goal is scored by drop kicking the ball (dropping the ball and then kickin ...

s in the pool match with Ireland and another in the quarter final victory over

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to th ...

. Hernández was nominated by the IRB as one of the five candidates for the 2007 International Player of the Year award, which was won by

Bryan Habana Bryan Gary Habana OIS (born 12 June 1983) is a South African former professional rugby union player who initially played as an outside centre but later on, he shifted to the wing. He most recently played for Toulon in the French Top 14 competi ...

. Before the

2011 Rugby World Cup The 2011 Rugby World Cup was the seventh Rugby World Cup, a quadrennial international rugby union competition inaugurated in 1987. The International Rugby Board (IRB) selected New Zealand as the host country in preference to Japan and South ...

, Hernández was named on a list of candidates for the greatest fly half in

Rugby World Cup The Rugby World Cup is a men's rugby union tournament contested every four years between the top international teams. The tournament is administered by World Rugby, the sport's international governing body. The winners are awarded the Webb ...

history. The Pumas wouldn't need to delay long to battle their southern hemisphere competitors while they were contained in the Tri-Places for that start of the 2012 Rugby Title. After a remarkable time for Rushing Neighborhood, Hernandez was back to his greatest and appeared set-to enjoy a key position in the contest for that Pumas. Hernández was part of the national squad that competes in the Rugby Championship. He was part of the national squad that competed at the

2015 Rugby World Cup The 2015 Rugby World Cup was the eighth Rugby World Cup, the quadrennial rugby union world championship. The tournament was hosted by England from 18 September to 31 October. Of the 20 countries competing in the World Cup in 2011, there was onl ...

Statistics

Tests

* 2009: 6/6 vs.

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 ...

; 13/6 vs. England * 2008: 28/6 vs.

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

; 8/11 vs.

; 15/8 vs. Italy * 2007 (all

): 7/9 vs. France, 11/9 vs.

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to t ...

; 30/9 vs.

; 7/10 vs.

(QF); 14/10 vs.

(SF); 19/10 vs. France (3rd place) * 2006: 17/6 vs.

; 24/6 vs.

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 List of islands of New Zealand, smaller islands. It is the ...

; 11/11 vs. England; 18/11 vs. Italy; 25/11 vs. France (1 try) * 2005: 5/11 vs. South Africa; 12/11 vs. Scotland]; 19/11 vs. Italy * 2004: 20/11: vs. France; 27/11: vs. Ireland; 4/12: vs. South Africa * 2003: 27/4: vs. Paraguay; 3/5: vs. Uruguay; 14/6: vs. France; 20/6: vs. France (1 try); 28/6: vs. South Africa (1 try); 30/8 vs. Canada national rugby union team, Canada.

: 10/10: vs. Australia; 14/10: vs.

; 22/10: vs.

(2 tries)

Tours

* 2009: England (first June Test, originally scheduled for Argentina but moved by the national federation to

Old Trafford Old Trafford () is a football stadium in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, and the home of Manchester United. With a capacity of 74,310 it is the largest club football stadium (and second-largest football stadium overall after We ...

) * 2008: Italy & France * 2007: England (vs Northampton and Leicester) * 2006: England, Italy & France * 2005: Scotland & Italy * 2004: France & Ireland * 2003: South Africa - Australia

* 2002: Italy & Ireland

Honours

: 2003–04, 2006–07

References

External links

Juan Martín Hernández
at UAR.com.ar
Stade FrançaisJuan Martin Hernandez “El Mago” in story lifeVIDEO: Incredible banana-swerve kick vs the All Blacks in 2012
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hernandez, Juan Martin 1982 births Living people Rugby union players from Buenos Aires Argentine people of Spanish descent Argentine rugby union players Argentine expatriate sportspeople in France Argentine expatriate sportspeople in South Africa Rugby union fly-halves Rugby union fullbacks Racing 92 players Stade Français players RC Toulonnais players Argentina international rugby union players Sharks (Currie Cup) players Jaguares (Super Rugby) players Argentine expatriate rugby union players Expatriate rugby union players in France Expatriate rugby union players in South Africa Argentina international rugby sevens players