Monday 10th September 2007
Argentina coach Marcelo Loffreda will demand from his players a repeat of last week's Stade de France heroics when they take on Georgia at Stade Gerland in Lyon on Tuesday.
The Pumas took advantage of a stage-struck France to open the tournament with a stunning 17-12 defeat of the hosts to get the Rugby World Cup off to a rollicking start.
Suddenly their passage to the quarter-finals in what has been dubbed the 'Group of Death' looks a lot more straightforward, especially with Ireland - the other major player in Pool D - struggling for form.
The South Americans are expected to notch a bonus-point victory against Georgia, who are playing their first game in the tournament.
But Loffreda is not taking anything for granted. Despite the fact that there are just four days between his side's first two fixtures, Loffreda has kept faith with the conquerors of France, making just six changes to the side that rocked France on Friday at the Stade Gerland.
If he could turn his troops on the organisers of the tournament, he would gladly do so. The Pumas have long suspected that the rugby world treats them as second-class citizens, and Loffreda pointed at the RWC schedule as proof.
"It isn't straightforward playing again so quickly," said the Leicester-bound coach.
"We are the only one of the top eight teams [in the IRB rankings] to play two games in four days, and we are expecting another battle."
Loffreda might have a point, but the Argentinians seems to take strength from adversity. They used the angst at being drawn against the hosts in the opening game - for the third RWC in succession - to great effect, and will undoubtedly feed off the scheduling slight with similar gusto.
Given the short turn-around, the temptation must have been there to field a second-string ensemble. But there's no flies on Loffreda - and the Lelos are no pushovers.
"We must try to win and then we'll see if we get something extra with the bonus point," he said.
"We can't afford to get on the triumphant bandwagon.
"Georgia play good rugby and they will play the game that suits them best. We're going to meet a lot of opposition ... we must try to surprise them.
"Georgia aren't an easy team to play against - they are solid up front.
"It is for this reason that even if we really haven't had enough time to recover, I have decided to trust the majority of the team who won against France."
Thus, Argentina retain the backbone that broke Les Bleus.
The changes see Marcos Ayerza and Santiago González Bonorino at prop, while Rimas Álvarez Kairelis comes in at lock and flanker Martín Durand is given the nod in the back row.
In the backs, Gonzalo Tiesi replaces Manuel Contepomi at centre and Federico Martín Aramburu comes in for Horacio Agulla on the left wing.
Scrum-half and captain Agustín Pichot will resume his new half-back partnership with Juan Martín Hernández.
"We need to play together to find more out about each other," said Pichot.
"We haven't got 30 matches together behind us."
Pichot believes concentration will be the key as the Pumas look to build on their tremendous start to the World Cup.
"We can't ruin in one match all the good things we did in the victory against Les Bleus," added the Stade Français star.
"We must go into this game against Georgia in a serious fashion and with a desire to continue on the same path."
Like most of the Pumas, the Georgians are exiles with almost all of their squad playing club rugby in France, but a majority are in the lower divisions whereas Argentina's French-based players, half the squad, are in the elite Top 14 championship - there were seven of them in the Top 14 final in June.
Georgia are looking for their first win at their second tournament with their most realistic chance against Namibia when the two weakest sides in the pool meet in Lens on Sept. 26.
But Georgia coach Malkhaz Cheishvili is looking to begin the campaign with a bang - he has picked a team that includes eleven players who featured in the last World Cup in Australia.
The Lelos are fabled for the size and strength of their the pack and will be eager to impress after an extended spell of preparation.
Indeed, Clermont prop Davit Zirakachvili has not discounted his side springing a surprise in Lyon.
"We want to disrupt one of the best packs in the world," he said.
"We have nothing to lose. Argentina proved against France that it isn't always the favourites that win.
"I am not going to say that we expect to beat the Argentinians but we aren't going to roll over, that's for sure."
Players to watch:
For Argentina: London Irish star Gonzalo Tiesi gets his first taste of World Cup action and will be eager to push for a place in Argentina's 1st XV. But the young centre has it all to do: a broken cheekbone sustained in the build-up to the tournament has left him short of match practice, whilst Manuel Contepomi has clicked with his twin brother, Felipe, in midfield - as one would expect!
For Georgia: It's not easy arriving at the party late and being whisked to the dance floor by the best performer in the room - but that's the task that faces the Georgians. So the pressure is on Lelos skipper Ilia Zedginidze to kept his troops in the fight - both mentally and physically. The Auch giant, who can play at loose forward or lock, is an experienced campaigner with an impressive strike-rate of 12 tries in 46 Tests.
Head-to-head: Santiago González Bonorino (Argentina) v David Khinchagashvili (Georgia): Both these sides pride themselves on their scrummaging prowess, so the battle between Capitolina's Santiago González Bonorino, who impressed mightily in the June Tests, and celebrated Clermont prop David Khinchagashvili is sure to be x-rated.
Past Results:
This will be the first meeting between these two sides.
Predicition: Expect more of the same from the Pumas - but only once they have tenderised Georgia's mountainous pack. Argentina by 21 points.
The teams:
Argentina: 15 Ignacio Corleto, 14 Lucas Borges, 13 Gonzalo Tiesi, 12 Felipe Contepomi, 11 Federico Martín Aramburu, 10 Juan Martín Hernández, 9 Agustín Pichot (c), 8 Juan Manuel Leguizamón, 7 Juan Fernández Lobbe, 6 Martín Durand, 5 Patricio Albacete, 4 Rimas Álvarez Kairelis, 3 Santiago González Bonorino, 2 Mario Ledesma, 1 Marcos Ayerza.
Replacements: 16 Alberto Vernet Basualdo, 17 Omar Hasan, 18 Esteban Lozada, 19 Martín Schusterman, 20 Nicolás Fernández Miranda, 21 Federico Todeschini, 22 Federico Serra.
Georgia: 15 Pavle Jimsheladze, 14 Irakli Machkhaneli, 13 Malkhaz Urjukashvili, 12 Irakli Giorgadze, 11 Besiki Khamashuridze, 10 Merab Kvirikashvili, 9 Irakli Abuseridze, 8 Besso Udesiani, 7 Grigol Labadze, 6 Giorgi Chkhaidze, 5 Mamuka Gorgodze, 4 Ilia Zedginidze (c), 3 David Zirakashvili, 2 Akvsenti Giorgadze, 1 David Khinchagashvili.
Replacements: 16 Goderdzi Shvelidze, 17 Avtandil Kopaliani, 18 Victor Didebulidze, 19 Zviad Maisuradze, 20 Bidzina Samkharadze, 21 Revaz Gigauri, 22 Giorgi Shkinin.
Date: Tuesday, September 11
Venue: Stade Gerland, Lyon
Kick-off: 20:00 (19:00 BST)
Conditions: Clear, dry, strong northerly winds - max 18°C, min 7°C
Referee: Nigel Owens
Touch judges: Dave Pearson, Simon McDowell
Television match official: Hugh Watkins
Assessor: Steve Hilditch
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