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LYON - Tryscoring veterinarian Rui Cordeiro had a tinge of regret while reflecting on Portugal's 13-108 rugby World Cup loss to the All Blacks here this morning (NZ time).
The bald reserve prop sprinted in circles when the third match official finally awarded his team's only try soon after halftime of the pool match at Stade de Gerland.
Cordeiro, 30, whose name is sure to be toasted throughout his home city of Coimbra, was a more considered figure when reflecting on a test as lopsided as anybody could have expected.
"We are very proud to play against the All Blacks, but not entirely because one of our objects was to not let them score more than a hundred points and we didn't achieve it," he said, drops of sweat still snaking down his brow more than an hour after the fulltime whistle.
"The All Blacks play all over the field, it is very difficult for us."
Before kickoff it was clear he and his teammates were up for a fight.
They walked solemnly onto the field, each with a hand on the man in front. And it is hard to remember a team singing their national anthem with the same passion and volume as Os Lobos - or The Wolves as they are known.
Their colourful supporters, forming the majority of the sold-out crowd of 42,000, were rarely silenced.
Cordeiro's try, preceded by a first-half dropped goal to first five-eighth Goncalo Malheiro, were both greeted with deafening roars.
Courage meant more than the scoreline to Os Lobos coach Tomaz Morais, who nevertheless expressed relief that the result never threatened New Zealand's World Cup record 145-17 defeat of Japan at Bloemfontein 12 years ago.
He hoped his side's continued improvement would convince the International Rugby Board not to reduce the number of teams from 20 to 16 at future tournaments, something that could spell the death knell for the sport in Portugal.
"I don't think that's how rugby should be treated," Morais said through an interpreter.
"When we came here, we came aiming to fight so that other countries can come to the World Cup. Other countries such as us will have this opportunity.
"For Portugal, it's only playing against better players that we can evolve. If we didn't have this goal, we wouldn't be able to get support and we wouldn't be able to play rugby."
The university professor said the game was an excellent spectacle, to which his world No 22 team contributed plenty.
"We weren't able to resist the physicality of the New Zealand team but we've played rugby from the first to the last minute. We're very happy," he said.
"We have sent a message to our country. Everybody now knows what rugby is and I think this is what the World Cup is for. To promote rugby and allow the smaller teams to play the bigger teams.
"All the players today came back as survivors."
- NZPA
