Peru caused the first surprise of the South American B Championship by beating Venezuela 13-5 in Medellín on Monday, a day after hosts Colombia had overwhelmed Costa Rica 61-6 in the opening match of the four-team tournament.
Esteban Salmon was the hero for Peru, scoring all of their points against the nation ranked 18 places above them in the latest IRB World Rankings, with a converted try and two penalties. Venezuela did score a try on the hour mark, but there was no way back despite two Peru yellow cards.
Colombia, though, top the standings after round one following their emphatic victory over Costa Rica, which saw them run in nine tries to the delight of the home crowd, with flanker German Rodriguez and fly half José Diosa scoring braces, the latter as part of a 26-point haul.
Mauricio Alvarez, Eduardo Vásquez, Carlos Trujillo, Alex Ruda and Jaun Scharrer scored Colombia’s other tries at the Unidad Deportiva de Castilla as they turned a 20-3 half-time advantage into a comfortable victory.
The South American B Championship continues on Wednesday when Colombia meet Peru in a match which could play a key role in determining the 2010 champions and Venezuela will look to bounce back from their opening defeat against Costa.
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