Pumas can equal England, says Contepomi

There is a gulf between Argentina and England but for 80 minutes in their World Cup opener the Pumas could be their equals, captain Felipe Contepomi said on Tuesday.

Argentina, a sensation at the last World Cup in France  finishing third, meet 2003 champions and 2007 runners-up England in their Pool B opener in Dunedin on Sept. 10.     

    “(To win) will take (for) us to be in our best game of the last four years and probably them (to play) one of their worst,” Contepomi said of Argentina’s chances of winning the match against a team he included among the favourites.     

    “They are better than us before the game, they will be better than us after the game but those 80 minutes is the only thing that counts and hopefully we can be competitive in those 80 minutes and have a good game,” the 34-year-old told Reuters.     

    Contepomi, going to his fourth World Cup, compared the pool with that of 2007 which he said had looked equally tough before a victory against hosts France in the opening match set them up to win it.     

    “Going into the last World Cup, the group couldn’t have been tougher. Now speaking retrospectively, we won that group so, yes, I would say this group is tougher.”     

    After England, the Pumas come up against Romania, Scotland and Georgia, whom they beat in the 2007 pool phase.     

    “All the teams have improved a lot and especially those teams,” he said after a squad photo session at Belgrano Athletic Club in the capital prior to their departure for New Zealand on Wednesday.     

    “Scotland have moved forward hugely in the last two to three years, they have one of the best coaches in the world, at least in my opinion, and Georgia and Romania have so many players in the Top 14 (championship) in France.     

    “Georgia came very close to upsetting Ireland in the last World Cup and I’m sure their main objective is to upset England, Scotland or Argentina in the pool stage.”     

NATIONAL COLOURS     

    Hooker Mario Ledesma, another of the 10 veterans of the 2007 side in Argentina’s 30-man squad, said the Pumas had overcome a difficult period of adaptation with new players coming in and were ready to give their best.     

    “We’re good, I’m reminded quite a bit of (going into) the last World Cup,” the 38-year-old, who is retiring after his fourth tournament, told Reuters.     

    “I hope that when we get (to New Zealand) the team can redouble (their efforts) and explode in the match against England.”     

    Ledesma said Argentina had traditionally drawn strength from playing in their national colours to overcome seemingly insurmountable odds.     

    “The possibility we have to play in this shirt, I’m not sure many teams have that sentiment... The only difference in our favour, I think, is that one so we’ll have to make it count.”     

    Argentina head for New Zealand with one change to the squad announced earlier this month. Genaro Fessia has replaced injured Alvaro Galindo among the back row forwards.     

    Squad     

    Forwards: Juan Fernandez Lobbe (Toulon), Juan Manuel Leguizamon (Lyon), Leonardo Senatore (Gimnasia Rosario), Alejandro Campos (Agen), Genaro Fessia (Cordoba Athletic), Patricio Albacete (Toulouse), Manuel Carizza (Biarritz), Julio Farias Cabello (Tucuman RC), Mariano Galarza (unattached), Tomas Vallejos (Harlequins), Marcos Ayerza (Leicester Tigers), Agustin Creevy (Montpellier), Juan Figallo (Montpellier),  Maximiliano Bustos (Montpellier), Mario Ledesma (unattached), Rodrigo Roncero (Stade Francais), Martin Scelzo (Agen)     

    Backs: Martin Rodriguez (Stade Francais), Horacio Agulla (Leicester Tigers), Juan Jose Imhoff (Duendes), Gonzalo Camacho (Exeter), Lucas Gonzalez Amorosino (Montpellier), Agustin Gosio (Newman), Gonzalo Tiesi (Stade Francais), Santiago Fernandez (Montpellier), Marcelo Bosch (Biarritz), Felipe Contepomi (Stade Francais, captain), Nicolas Sanchez (Bordeaux-Begles), Alfredo Lalanne (London Irish), Nicolas Vergallo (Toulouse)