Loffreda expects different game

Argentina coach Marcelo Loffreda has taunted Welsh rival Mike Ruddock ahead of the second Test in Buenos Aires on Saturday.

The Pumas’ supremo could not resist a swipe at the Welsh plan of an aggressive defence which turned out to be a false hope as Argentina ran in six tries in a 50-44 victory at Tucuman last weekend.

Former Argentina hooker Loffreda said: “Before the first Test I didn’t know Mike Ruddock and his style.

“Now I have some idea. He likes a very aggressive defence – but he’d like it to happen without the missed tackles.

“Mike Ruddock has to take care of that issue. I know Wales have an expansive game, but that was already in place before he took over so there is no change of style in that respect.”

Even so, Loffreda – who makes two changes to his team for Saturday’s clash - is expecting a more intense match following the try-feast last weekend.

He said: “The next game will be very different.

“It will be more like a Test match – there won’t be as many points because both teams will try to improve their defences and now we know more about each other’s styles.”

Loffreda also had a good word for Wales props Duncan Jones and Adam Jones, famous in Wales for their flamboyant hairstyles and rapidly making a name for themselves in a land in which front-row forwards are the pin-up players.

He was also impressed with number eight Michael Owen and Gavin Henson, although with the belief that the latter’s best position is centre rather than the full-back role he switched to mid-way through the opening test and which he remains in for Saturday.

Loffreda said, “I liked the two props – the Jones boys are very good and the number eight is a very good player.

“The number 12 was another who impressed me. I thought he was good at centre rather than at full-back. It’s the first time I´d seen Henson and thought he did very well.”

The Pumas´ coach was delighted with his side’s victory, but has called on his side to maintain their concentration after seeing a 38-9 lead whittled down to just six points when the final whistle went last weekend.

He said, “We did well in the first 20 minutes of the second-half and after that went into a mental hole that happened because we were tired. We have to improve our mental fitness.

“The last Test was strange. We did very well in the first-half, but lost control five or six times in the second.

“We need to be more conscious of that and we need to keep control and concentrate.

“If we don’t, Wales are very quick and dangerous. We did very well at the start of the second half, but then lost our concentration.”

A pubic bone injury rules out one of last week’s try scorers, Martin Gaitan, with Grenoble’s Jose Orengo taking over the number 13 jersey.

Nicolas Fernandez Miranda returns at scrum-half from club duties with Padua in Italy and takes over from Maties Albina.