Pumas will play catch-up in top league – Porta

WHILE their ascension to rugby’s top table is exciting and good for the development of the game, Argentina still have plenty to worry about before the world champions All Blacks, Australia and the Springboks lock horns with them later this year.

Because, despite the interest that regular competition with the Souther n Hemisphere giants will generate, there is a concern that they will be hanging on desperately to the coat-tails of their decorated rivals.

And one of those most concerned is the South American country’s greatest ever player, Hugo Porta. “Sure, it is great that we finally have a regular competition,” the former star flyhalf beamed during the recent Laureus Sports Awards in London.

“We have been waiting for this kind of competition for a long time, but there is a lot of work ahead if the Pumas want to be competitive.”

Porta cited the amateurish domestic competition as a major stumbling block, and he also watered down the hype of the Pampas XV triumphing in the Vodacom Cup last year.

“Come on, the Vodacom Cup is not a strong competition. It is not a true test. People back home were getting so hyped up about it, as if it was the Currie Cup or something. But I think that the Pampas could have been tested better in the Varsity Cup.”

While the South African franchises rage on, with the Southern Kings desperate for a slice of the Super Rugby pie, Porta added that Argentinians also needed a strong regional competition. But, as ever, their location has proved to be a real stumbling block.

As we spoke about the possibilities, ranging from an expanded Super Rugby competition split into pools, right through to a lower tier event incorporating them and limited but exciting nations such as Tonga, Samoa and Fiji, Porta’s ready smile was betrayed by his furrowed brow. “It’s difficult. You cannot keep adding to Super Rugby, it is already a long competition. And where do you get the sponsors to support a second tier tournament? There is not so much money in the game. Things are tough.”

Porta, who won 42 caps in a glittering inter national career that spanned nearly 20 years, insisted that Argentinian rugby needed to get its ship in order – and quickly. He warned that playing the giants may prove overwhelming and even embarrassing.

“Argentina has a proud record in World Cups. But that is a one-off game usually. Here we will face big sides, and that will take its toll on our resources.”

Porta remains a proud Puma, and wants to see them do well.

But he reserves concerns about the implications of playing in the tournament for some of the country’s best players. “I am worried about those based in Europe. I don’t know if their clubs will allow them to go away for so long, without cancelling their contracts. It would be a huge financial sacrifice, for sure.”

A scorer of 408 Test points, and with a keen eye for adventure, Porta admitted that he wasn’t the biggest fan of the modern game, though.