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PARIS - The future remains uncertain for Argentina's Pumas despite producing the greatest effort in their history to finish third in the rugby World Cup in France.
Players and officials have warned that Argentinian rugby will go backwards unless the national team are admitted to a regular international competition such as the Six Nations in Europe or the Tri-Nations in the southern hemisphere.
Travel costs have often been cited as reasons for Argentina's relatively small number of test matches and their absence from an international competition.
But Pumas captain and halfback Agustin Pichot, set to join his second Paris team in Metro Racing after winning the French club championship with Stade Francais, said the balance sheet could not be the only test.
"Rugby at the moment has to make a very tough decision, one in a more romantic, non-profitable way," he said.
Argentina made a dramatic start to the World Cup, beating hosts France 17-12 in the opening match and later eliminating Ireland, their nemesis at the 2003 world cup, with a 30-15 win.
Although Argentina lost the semifinal 13-37 to South Africa, they have now climbed to fourth in the world rankings.
Last week Syd Millar, the outgoing chairman of the International Rugby Board (IRB), said Argentina had been "neglected" and that a place should be found for them in an expanded Tri-Nations as there was no room left in European rugby's showpiece event.
But Millar, like many supporters of Argentina's advance, stressed it was "not in the gift of the IRB," to get them into either competition.
For Pichot, whose last appearance in a 12-year Puma career came in the thrilling 34-10 win over France in the World Cup playoff for third yesterday, the warm words were all too familiar.
"The press conference in 2003, if you listen to it, which I have in the last month, was exactly the same," he said.
In a country where soccer is king the Pumas have made important advances this year with millions watching their progress in the World Cup and even an important soccer match delayed to avoid a clash with the Pumas' quarterfinal against Scotland.
Argentina have 38,000 registered players and nearly 9000 juniors with 400 clubs.
But of the 30 players in the Pumas World Cup squad only one, winger Horacio Agulla, plays in Argentina and he remains an amateur.
In 2006 Argentine players threatened to go on strike to claim player payments and more professional coaching and training from a federation which is hostile to any kind of "professionalism" of a sport predominately played in the wealthly suburbs of Buenos Aires.
The Pumas want to get rid of this elite image and are encouraged by projects to promote the sport among youth in disadvantaged areas such as in Virreyes on the outskirts of Bueno Aires which involves 400 people between six to 19 years of age.
But Pichot wants rugby to expand not only in Argentina but worldwide and is against reducing the number of teams in the next World Cup from 20 to 16 in a bid to reduce the thrashings which had blighted the five previous World Cups.
"Reducing the number of countries from 20 to 16 would be the end of rugby," Pichot said.
"We want Argentina, Fiji (quarterfinalists) and the rest of the countries to have a chance to be on the stage.
"Two of the greatest teams in the world (Australia and New Zealand) have gone home in the quarterfinals.
"It's time to look and say where do we want to go? Do we want to go for more open rugby or will there just be a six or 10-country tournament?
"You know my answer, I want rugby to be for everyone, not just a few."
- AFP
