KEY POINTS:
Regardless of last night's result against England, Samoa is aiming for a spot at rugby's top table.
By the 2011 World Cup in New Zealand, the Samoans will know whether they have achieved their ambitious aim - to be in the world's top five teams.
It was an ambition which didn't seem too lofty when the Samoans were running late for lunch in the smart district of Neuilly-Sur-Seine last week. The reason was that 1000 schoolchildren had descended on the training ground to wave off their adopted World Cup team to Nantes, where England awaited.
Other teams would have ignored the commotion but the Samoans were content to sign autographs and then stood together to sing a thank you song before starting to train 25 minutes later than anticipated.
"We could not say no - the children have been following us for the last two or three weeks," explained Semo Sititi, their long-serving captain.
Samoa burst on to the world scene 16 years ago, beating Wales to reach the 1991 quarter-finals, yet they remain an unfulfilled group and are unable to shake off the image of a laid-back troupe of Pacific Islanders.
However, by the next World Cup, it will be judgment day on the bold mission statement of the Samoan Rugby Union to be ranked in the top five by 2011.
They will be hampered by the fact that every year, 30 to 50 of their best young players depart for schools in New Zealand and Australia. The migration has become a part of island life in which families look to give their offspring the best possible chance.
All Black flanker Chris Masoe was the latest to emerge through this route.
"It is not impossible, we have the talent," Peter Schuster, coach to the 1991 team and now chief executive of the Samoan union, said. "We have got to show these players they can achieve their goal by staying in the country. We have to develop a new level for players to aspire to."
The creation of a high performance unit funded by the International Rugby Board for an initial three-year period should help.
The aim is to develop talent from a $90 million 'war chest' that has been set aside by the IRB for rugby below the top tier.
