Rugby World Cup Pool A: Argentina v RomaniaMarcelo Loffreda and his Pumas refuse to look beyond their third Pool A match today against Romania at the Aussie Stadium (8.30 p.m. local time), but everything about his selections and their approach thus far confirms the impression they have been keeping their powder dry all along for Sunday's pivotal clash against Ireland.
Even during their somewhat subdued effort in the tournament opener against Australia, there was an inescapable feeling that Argentina somehow weren't playing with an inner belief that they really could beat the hosts and holders.
Loffreda subsequently made 14 changes for the win over Namibia, and another half-dozen changes for the Romanian match.
The net result is that many of his key players, such as Agustin Pichot and Felipe Contepomi, won't have started either of their preceding two pool games before the meeting with Ireland. Indeed, it appears that as little as two or three of the Pumas' squad will be obliged to start both their final two pool games.
Maybe Loffreda knew this all along, or he was swayed by some of the performances over the first two games, such as the displays of the veteran hookers Mario Ledesma and Federico Mendez. Perhaps it was a bit of both.
In any event, it looks like Ireland will be facing a front row of Mauricio Reggiardo, Mendez and Omar Hasan, Nicolas Fernandez Lobbe and Rimas Alvarez in the second-row, with Lucas Ostiglia giving an injection of mobility to the back row alongside Rolando Martin and Gonzalo Longo, who is the brains of the pack.
It looks like Gonzalo Quesada's goal-kicking will have to be accommodated at outhalf alongside Pichot, with Felipe Contepomi reverting to inside centre.
Jose Orengo's experience looks like earning him the number 13 jersey ahead of Manuel Contepomi or the more exciting Martin Gaitan, the late replacement for their absent captain, Lisandro Arbizu.
Diego Albanese, the thorn in Ireland's right flank in Lens four years ago, Jose Maria Nunez Piossek and full back Ignacio Corletto still look the established outside three.
Corletto should hold off the inexperienced but gifted and Stade Francais-bound 21-year-old Juan Martin Hernandez, brother of Argentinian sporting heroine Maria de la Paz Hernandez, who was part of the Argentinian silver medal-winning hockey team at the Sydney Olympics and the world championship winning side in Perth last year.
All that will remain conjecture until after the Romanian match, and in part circumstances have forced Loffreda to keep his frontline team out of the starting line-up four days before meeting Ireland.
This starting team contains just five players who were in the Pumas' starting XV against the Wallabies in the opening game on October 10th.
"That's why we have chosen this team, because we have two games in 96 hours," said Loffreda. "If we had five, six or seven days from game to game then we would have had a different selection. In this case we must use our resources as best we can."
Last Saturday's 90-8 defeat to the Wallabies in Brisbane was Romania's biggest loss at a Rugby World Cup, though Loffreda is wary of the Oaks' pride in their performance.
"We don't know what is going to be the reaction of the Romanian team . . . but when somebody plays that type of game, you don't know how they are going to react because maybe they will try to take revenge. It will be very very difficult for us," said Loffreda.
Loffreda has already voiced his discontent with his side's cramped fixture and yesterday he restated his argument.
"We have two games in four days, it is not long enough," he said. "We were supposed to be the seeds in group and the way the fixtures have worked out favours Ireland.
"Maybe it is because we are regarded as a second-rate rugby nation, but it is not right. If we had seven days to prepare for Sunday's match like Ireland have we might do things differently but as it is, we have to use our resources in the best way we can."
Romanian captain Romeo Gontineac, who will play his 50th Test for the Oaks today, did not think that his team needed to alter its physical preparation for the Pumas match, but needed to work on the mental aspect.
"We will prepare as well as we did against Ireland and Australia, the only difference is that we require more psychological strength," said Gontineac.
While this will be the first encounter between the two teams at a World Cup, they have met six times previously with Argentina winning each time. The most recent was a 68-22 victory in Rosario in 1998.
ARGENTINA: J Hernandez; J Nunez Piossek, M Gaitan, M Contepomi, H Senillosa; J Fernandez Miranda, N Fernandez Miranda; R Roncero, M Ledesma, M Scelzo, P Sporleder, P Albacete, S Phelan (capt), M Durand, P Bouza. Replacements: F Mendez, O Hasan, R Alvarez, R Martin, A Pichot, G Quesada, J Orengo.
ROMANIA: G Brezoianu; M Vioreanu, V Maftei, R Gontineac (capt), I Teodorescu; I Tofan, L Sirbu; P Toderasc, R Mavrodin, S Florea, S Socol, C Petre, M Tudori, O Tonita, G Chiriac. Replacements: P Ion, C Popescu, M Socaciu, A Petrichei, F Tatu, A Iulian, C Sauan.
Referee: Chris White (England)
Today, 11.30 a.m. (Irish time)
