Argentina captain Felipe Contepomi is in the Pumas' squad to
face France on Saturday despite going off injured in their
latest defeat by Scotland.
Contepomi, who plays his club rugby with Top 14 side Toulon,
was forced off after 62 minutes with an injury to his left
knee.
Argentina will be desperate to win the match after suffering
successive home defeats to the Scots, and their recent
rivalry with France will ensure a full-blooded contest.
France
coach Marc Lièvremont appeared to have tongue firmly planted
in cheek when he described the match as "a little game
between friends", but 'Les Bleus' will also be keen to end
their gruelling season with a win after their recent
hammering by South Africa.
France,
who name their team later today (Tuesday), will definitely
be forced to make one change from the side overwhelmed 42-17
two weeks ago as debutant Wenceslas Lauret has been ruled
out.
The
young Biarritz number eight dislocated his left shoulder
against the world champions, opening up the possibility of
an international recall for Stade Toulousain's Louis
Picamoles.
"It's a
shame, because until his forced exit I liked his
performance," lamented Lièvremont. "He has scored many
points on this tour," added the France coach.
Picamoles' club colleague Florian Fritz could also be in
line for a starting slot - his first under Lièvremont -
after the centre impressed during France's weekend win
against Argentina 'A'. Perpignan duo Maxime Mermoz and David
Marty were the starting pair in Cape Town.
The 2010 Grand Slam winners will go into the
match as the IRB's third-ranked team after they climbed
above Australia despite not even playing at the weekend -
not a full Test anyway.
Australia's 20-21 home defeat by England means the Wallabies
have slipped from third to fourth, with France being the
beneficiaries as they climbed to their highest ranking spot
in three years.
Scotland
were also on the move, climbing from ninth to seventh
following their 2-0 series win in Argentina - their first in
the southern hemisphere. England remain sixth, but have
closed the gap on fifth-placed Ireland, while Argentina
traded placed with Scotland as they slipped from seventh to
ninth.
Toulon and England
fly-half Jonny Wilkinson, meanwhile, has backed Australia's
Matt Giteau after the latter missed a simple 18m kick late
on in the Wallabies 20-21 defeat by Martin Johnson's team at
the weekend.
"It's just one of those
things that happens once in a very, very blue moon and when
it does it's tough to take, but I've done it more times than
he has," said Wilkinson after the game.
France 'A' ended their Churchill Cup campaign with a
24-10 win against the USA at the weekend. Stade Francais
winger Julien Arias scored twice, with Yannick Forestier
grabbing France's other try. Fly-half Lionel Beauxis kicked
all three conversions, in addition to a penalty, to complete
the scoring.
The USA
side featured several France-based players, including
Biarritz flyer Takudzwa Ngwenya and Albi duo Mate Moeakiola
and John Van der Giessen.
France's Under-20 side secured fifth spot in the IRB
Junior World Championships after beating Argentina 37-23 in
Santa Fe on Monday.
The
"Blueberries" ran in five tries, with flanker Kevin Gimeno
grabbing a brace. The other try-scorers were lock Romain
Taofifénua, captain Mickael Ivaldi and full-back Brice
Dulin. Fly-half Jean-Marc Doussain kicked tow conversions,
with Gilles Bosch adding a third and a penalty.
