Pumas set up rugby W.Cup showdown with Scotland

Argentina got their World Cup campaign back on track with a 43-8 win over Romania in a Pool B match. Their Saturday's win sets up a showdown with Scotland in Wellington next Sunday with the winner in pole position to ensure a slot in the quarter-finals. The Pumas scored six tries on the back of a storming start to the match before Romania steadied to keep the winning margin down. The east Europeans are now set to make it seven straight failures to get out of the pool stages at the World Cup. "We were desperate for a win, that was the urgent for us, so we are very happy," said Argentina skipper Juan Martin Fernandez Lobbe. "It got a bit messy the game, but we went back to our system and it worked." Both teams came into the contest needing a win to keep their hopes alive of reaching the last eight, the Pumas having lost 13-9 to England and Romania falling 34-24 to Scotland. Argentina skipper and fly-half Felipe Contepomi was absent with bruised ribs and replaced by Montpellier's Santiago Fernandez, who switched from centre, while Romania made three changes to their starting XV all in the backs division. The Pumas piled on the pressure from the start recovering the ball from an up-and-under to send fly-half Fernandez scampering under the posts for a 7-0 lead after just five minutes. Four minutes later it was 14-0 when the Argentina pack muscled their way deep into Romanian territory and when the ball was flung wide, flanker Juan Manuel Leguizamon barrelled his way over. Fly-half Tiberius Ionut Dimofte got Romania on the scoreboard with a close-range penalty after 13 minutes but it was mainly one-way traffic in the direction of the Romanian goalposts. Argentina declined two kickable penalties as they went after the four tries that would ensure them a bonus fifth point and that paid dividends after 21 minutes when the Pumas pack combined in the loose for prop Juan Figallo to bulldoze his way over. The south Americans were totally dominant at the breakdown, procuring a succession of quick balls for their backs and it was a solo break through the middle that brought the fourth try from full-back Lucas Gonzalez Amorosino. Romania threatened for the first time with a break down the right wing and when the ball was spun out left from the breakdown the east Europeans had an extra man out wide and centre Ionel Cazan dived over to make it 26-8 at half-time. The Oaks bravely dug deep in the second half when reduced to 14 men but constant Argentine pressure finally broke them down in the 64th minute when replacement Juan Jose Imhoff came off his wing to speed through the centre and score under the posts. An interception try from skipper Fernandez Lobbe after 72 minutes rounded off the scoring.