Rugby: Argentina vs. France in Buenos Aires. Test Match

Argentina and France will both be looking to end a miserable month on a high when they clash in Buenos Aries on Saturday.

After the Pumas’ consecutive home losses to Scotland and France’s humiliation in South Africa, a loss for either side would spell disaster.

With the French coaching staff saying the tour is already ‘ruined’ after their horror show in Cape Town and bemoaning the attitude of certain individuals in that match, Saturday’s match will be certainly be a test of character.

Marc Lièvremont has worn a grumpy face this week as he juggles with widespread illness in the camp and general player fatigue at the end of a long season.

Yet despite that disappointing defeat to the Springboks, a lethargic finish to their tour game last Friday and a tummy bug doing the rounds, France head into this game in better shape than their hosts.

It might sound harsh, but Argentina have found themselves on a slippery slope over the past year or two and have progressively gotten worse. Another try-less loss to Scotland last week marked a new low after the giddy heights of the 2007 World Cup.

The Pumas have won just four of their fourteen Tests since then. Closer inspection of their form over the last three years reveals they have scored just three tries in their last five games and only six in their last twelve!

As mentioned in last week’s preview, the Pumas have to start playing positive rugby or the will become the whipping boys for the southern hemisphere counterparts in the expanded Tri-Nations.

Of course Santiago Phelan’s team won’t be thinking past Saturday’s showdown as they aim to save face – and history might be on their side.

France don’t have a great record against the Pumas, the Tricolors have only won two of their eight matches since the turn of the century and their last win in Argentina dates back to 1998.

After matching the side that lost in Cape Town against the side that beat an Argentine XV in training, Lièvremont has opted for a mix of the two.

It’s perhaps more interesting to note who has been dropped from the side that was so harshly criticised in South Africa since Lièvremont promised to axe those with an attitude problem. Top of that list is the Perpignan centre pairing that was responsible for giving away two tries.

As a result Bayonne’s Lionel Mazars will be allowed to show his enthusiasm outside the power of Florian Fritz and Jérôme Porical gets a Test debut after another points-rich season for Perpignan.

Clément Poitrenaud was initially dropped, but finds his way onto the bench because Aurélien Rougerie has jetted home to be at his wife’s side as she gives birth. The same goes for Maxime Mermoz, who is given a place on the bench because David Skrela has not been able to recover from the gastroenteritis that has affected most of the squad at some stage or another.

In a desperate effort to shake up his team, Santiago Phelan has dropped loose forward Juan Manuel Leguizamón to the bench. One of the most talented back rows of his generation, the Stade Français flank was mediocre against Scotland and his commitment to the cause has been called into question.

There shouldn’t be to many strangers on the field for either team as most of the Pumas ply their trade in the Top 14. They say familiarity breeds contempt and with pressure reaching critical levels, don’t expect a well-tempered encounter – especially considering the forecast wet conditions.

It’s an overused cliche but the French really are an unpredictable bunch. Will their wounded pride provoke a reaction or will they suffer from one-foot-on-the-plane-home syndrome?

On paper at least, and judging by Argentina’s double dismal display against Scotland, the XV de France must start as overwhelming favourites.

Players to watch:

For Argentina: With under-performing Juan Leguizamón dropped to the bench, Montauban flank Alejandro Campos gets a rare chance to start. Campos made an impact when he came off the bench last week and with Montauban dumped out of the professional ranks in France, Campos will be looking to catch the eye with another big performance.

For France: France have no lack of talent in midfield so Lionel Mazars will have to come up with something very special if he is to become a regular feature in blue. Mazars has been on the scene for while and won his first cap back in 2007 in New Zealand. With Mathieu Bastareaud missing through injury and David Marty having misfired a fortnight ago, the Bayonne centre has a chance to put his hand up for a place in next year’s World Cup.

Head-to-head: Back in Bleu after a long absence due to injury, Biarritz loosehead prop Fabien Barcella has worked his way back into the starting XV. Considered one of the most powerful scruammagers in the game, his tussle with another powerhouse, Clermont tighthead Martín Scelzo should be an epic battle. Seven years Barcella’s senior, Scelzo is a hard as they come.

Previous results:

2008: France won 12-6 in Marseille
2007: Argentina won 34-10 in Paris
2007: Argentina won 17-10 in Paris
2006: France won 27-26 in Paris
2004: Argentina won 24-14 in Marseilles
2003: Argentina won 33-32 in Buenos Aires
2003: Argentina won 10-6 in Buenos Aires
2002: Argentina won 28-27 in Buenos Aires

Prediction: Despite the hiccup in South Africa, we can’t see the Six Nations champions losing this one. France by ten points

The teams:

Argentina:15 Martín Rodríguez, 14 Lucas González Amorosino, 13 Gonzalo Tiesi, 12 Santiago Fernández, 11 Rafael Carballo, 10 Felipe Contepomi, 9 Nicolás Vergallo, 8 Juan Martín Fernández Lobbe, 7 Alejandro Campos, 6 Genaro Fessia, 5 Patricio Albacete, 4 Manuel Carizza, 3 Martín Scelzo, 2 Mario Ledesma, 1 Rodrigo Roncero.
Replacements:16 Agustín Creevy, 17 Marcos Ayerza, 18 Juan Figallo, 19 Mariano Galarza, 20 Juan Manuel Leguizamón, 21 Agustín Figuerola, 22 Horacio Agulla.

France: 15 Jerome Porical, 14 Vincent Clerc, 13 Lionel Mazars, 12 Florian Fritz, 11 Julien Malzieu, 10 Francois Trinh-Duc, 9 Morgan Parra, 8 Louis Picamoles, 7 Julien Bonnaire , 6 Thierry Dusautoir (capt), 5 Lionel Nallet, 4 Pascal Papé, 3 Nicolas Mas, 2 Dimitri Szarzewski, 1 Fabien Barcella.
Replacements: 16 Guillem Guirado, 17 Jean-Baptise Poux, 18 Julien Pierre, 19 Gregory Lamboley, 20 Dimitri Yachvili, 21 Maxime Mermoz, 22 Clément Poitrenaud.

Date: Saturday, June 26
Venue: Estadio José Amalfitani, Buenos Aires
Kick-off: 15.45 (19.45 GMT)
Weather: 11° C, heavy rain showersReferee: Stuart Dickinson (Australia
Assistant referees: Dave Pearson (England), Jaco Peyper (South Africa)
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SOURCE:
“Preview: France v Argentina”
25th June 2010
By Ross Hastie
Planet Rugby
http://www.planet-rugby.co.za
http://www.planet-rugby.co.za/story/0,25883,16024_6227727,00.html