On the one hand, he suffered a demoralising 40-6 defeat in 2013 in only his second Test in charge of Argentina.
But on the other, his immensely talented Pumas swept Ireland aside with a blistering, free-flowing and thoroughly entertaining 40-23 victory in the Rugby World Cup quarter-final last year.
But despite the rollercoaster of emotions, one aspect remained the same in both matches.
“For me it’s the best rugby stadium around,” said Hourcade in an interview from Tokyo, where Argentina scored seven tries in an impressive 54-20 victory over Japan on Saturday.
“I love how close the fans are to the pitch, the noise and the atmosphere are incredible.
“And the Welsh fans are so passionate about their national team, they remind me of the supporters from my home province of Tucuman (in north-west Argentina) – they’re fanatical about the game.”
Argentina’s performances in the Rugby Championship belied their last-place finish in the table – they pushed New Zealand, Australia and South Africa close, to varying degrees, both home and away during their 2016 campaign.
Despite five defeats in six matches, Hourcade is unswerving in his attacking philosophy; his forwards will continue to offload in the tackle and his backs to run the ball from deep in their own territory. Entertainment is guaranteed.
And his preparations for this year’s northern hemisphere tour could not be more different from his experiences in 2013.
With the exception of Australia-based scrum-half Tomas Cubelli, Hourcade’s 31-man squad in Wales is made up of domestic players. The majority of them play for Los Jaguares, Argentina’s newly established franchise in Super Rugby.
Four years ago, the core spine of Argentina’s squad were playing in Europe on a merciless treadmill of all year-round rugby.
“The 2013 tour came at a difficult time for the Pumas,” said Hourcade. “The previous coach, Santiago Phelan, had just resigned and the players weren’t in the right state of mind.
“Everything was hurried. I only started two weeks before we went on tour and the majority of my team were outside of Argentina, so I had no time with them prior to flying to Europe.
“However, today we arrive in a completely different state, the difference in those four years is enormous.”
Despite Wales’ 32-8 defeat by Australia on Saturday, Hourcade remains unmoved in his assessment of Wales.
“They have a fantastic squad to choose from,” he said. “They showed that at the Rugby World Cup – how many important players did they lose to injury? Yet the replacements maintained that high level set by the others and reached the quarter-finals with almost a new backline.”
Argentina have only beaten Wales once in six matches in Cardiff – a 26-12 win in 2012.
Wales fans will be hoping Hourcade leaves Cardiff with more fond memories of his favourite stadium – but without the victory he craves.
Tickets are still available to see Wales take on Argentina this Saturday at www.wru.wales/tickets starting from only £20!
