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ARGENTINA

Pool: D (France, Ireland, Georgia, Namibia)

World Ranking: 6

Coach: Marcelo Loffreda

Key players: Felipe Contepomi, Marcos Ayerza

Argentina have developed into genuine contenders at Test level over the past few years, but their early World Cup record does little to mirror this current strength.

In the first three World Cups, the Pumas managed just one win from nine pool games, though they were always competitive and rarely went down by more than a couple of scores.

Their true ability as a rugby nation came through at the 1999 World Cup, when they beat Ireland 28-24 for a place in the quarter-finals before going down to eventual runners-up France.

Four years later, Ireland gained revenge with a nail-biting 16-15 win in Adelaide as the two teams again battled it out for a spot in the quarter-finals.

The Pumas received a lot of sympathy after the narrow loss because organisers had made them play four games in two weeks, while their play-off opponents Ireland were given a month to play the same number of games.

Had the Pumas been given similar time to rest and recover from injuries, the result could have been very different.

Argentina qualified for this year's World Cup by winning the Americas qualifying group and since then they have given plenty of evidence that they will be a force to be reckoned with in France.

On their winter tour of Europe last year, Argentina recorded their first ever win at Twickenham when they beat England 25-18. They followed this with a victory in Italy before going down by a point to France in Paris.

Two wins over a touring Ireland side, although admittedly a weakened one, earlier this summer continued their momentum and they will go into the 2007 tournament with a genuine chance of reaching the quarter-finals.

To do so, they will need to beat Ireland and/or France to gain one of the two spots from Pool D. France at home are likely to be too strong so it looks like it will come down to another winner-takes-all clash with Ireland - their third such World Cup encounter with the men in green.

If Argentina win their group then the semi-finals are a real possibility as they would face the runners-up from Pool C, probably Scotland or Italy, in the quarters.

But if they finish second in their group then a showdown with World Cup favourites New Zealand almost certainly awaits.

With many of their senior internationals now plying their trade in Europe, Argentina's traditional amateur approach to the game is no longer such a disadvantage to the national team.

The Pumas have also embraced the abbreviated version of the game in recent years, using the World Sevens Series to help develop young players.

Under coach Marcelo Loffreda - who is due to join English champions Leicester after the World Cup - Argentina have added an exciting running game to their traditional forward strengths.

Argentina have long been respected as one of the best scrummaging sides in the world, and they will be able to boast one of the strongest packs in France.

But nowadays they are so much more than a forward powerhouse and, with backs such as Agustin Pichot (pictured), Felipe Contepomi and Juan Martin Hernandez, they have an all-round game that could surprise a few people.

Rugby World Cup Record

1987: One pool win

1991: No wins

1995: No wins

1999: Quarter-finals

2003: Quarter-final play-offs

Terence O'Rorke