Pichot rejects 'favourites' tag
Agustin Pichot has been one of the players of the tournament so far
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Tuesday, 02, Oct 2007 02:22
Argentina captain Agustin Pichot has rejected the suggestion his side are clear favourites to beat Scotland in their Rugby World Cup quarter-final.
The scrum-half, who has been one of the Pumas' top players as they amassed four wins out of four from the toughest pool in the competition, believes Scotland will provide a stern test.
Despite losing to New Zealand 40-0 in their third match of the pool and only narrowly defeating Italy in the qualifying decider at the weekend, Pichot believes Scotland's world ranking of eighth is not indicative of the quality the team possesses.
"I never take notice of statistics or rankings. I don't like them and don't think they are true," he said, despite his own side being the top-ranked team outside the power three of the All Blacks, Australia and South Africa.
"We can't afford to think we are better than anyone. We have to play at a very high level for 80 minutes, especially against a team like Scotland."
Scotland's own ranking has improved during the tournament as they have moved from 11th at the expense of Samoa, Italy and Wales – all of whom were eliminated at the pool stage.
"Even though we may come in ranked higher than Scotland, Scotland proved they are in the best eight teams," Pichot continued.
"When the competition started, they were written off and so were we. They are in the same position as us."
Sunday's clash at the Stade de France was expected to feature the tournament hosts, but Bernard Laporte's men suffered defeat to Argentina in the opening match and needed a victory over a beleaguered and below-par Ireland to progress.