Today's other stories in brief

Roncero a grass act

It's fair to say that many average folk are superstitious - so it's no surprise that rugby players have their hang-ups. The former Lions, Ireland and St Mary's College fullback Rodney O'Donnell had a few pet obsessions, so much so that team-mates used to give him a ferocious time, placing ladders in corridors, changing room numbers to 13 and so on.

The Argentine prop Rodrigo Roncero has revealed he is given to several pre-game rituals.

"I respect all my superstitions before I take to the field," he says. "I briefly jump two times, then I grab some grass and throw it into the air, and finally I cross myself."

Unfortunately, it doesn't stop there, as he points out: "The problem is that you start to add new superstitions as you go and it could become too much to remember them all."

Roncero and his compatriots Juan Martin Hernández, Agustin Pichot and Ignacio Corleto all play their rugby with Stade Français and they'll be in familiar settings for their pivotal Pool D clash with Ireland as the club's ground, Stade Jean-Bouin, is right next to Parc des Princes, which will stage the fateful clash next Sunday.

Fosi answers call

Leinster fans will remember Fosi Pala'amo, the Samoan prop who spent some time with the province. He was a popular member of the squad before leaving during the summer but on Saturday he popped up again when coming on as a replacement during the World Cup match between Samoa and England. Pala'amo wasn't a first-choice member of the Samoan squad but was called up because of an injury to one of the original 30.

On Saturday at the Stade de la Beaujoire in Nantes he was introduced as a replacement for the loosehead Kas Lealamanua and almost made a try-scoring debut - unfortunately the pass intended for him, yards from the English line, was a poor one and he could not collect it.

English let out to play

It seems that at the players' request the strict regimen of the England set-up was relaxed a little recently and a dispensation was provided for those thirsting for a few beers. The night out will hardly have been counterproductive, but it would be interesting to learn if it included a spot of karaoke.

The old rugby terminology about the piano players among the backs and the piano shifters among and the forwards seems not to apply to this England squad. Loosehead prop Andrew Sheridan plays guitar; hooker George Chuter plays saxophone; tighthead prop Matt Stevens reached the final of the television series Charity Stars in their Eyes.

Flanker Joe Worsley is an accomplished pianist while outhalf Jonny Wilkinson plays the guitar and is learning piano. A talented bunch.

Pumas stick to routine

Argentina coach Marcelo Loffreda admitted his team would not be doing anything different in preparing for the Ireland game on Sunday.

"Yesterday we had a day off," he said. "That's normally what we do. It allows the players to recover.

"It's a day off for the players and the staff. We need to look at the players' loads and mental aspects. They are working very hard and have been training since July. Tuesday we will get back into work.

"We'll alternate between the gym and the training ground until Sunday. It's important now to work on quality, not intensity, because we've already achieved intensity. We need to work on tactics, strategies and eliminating errors."

It's certainly been a recipe for success so far.

Quotes of the weekend

Of course we have a lot of confidence and there is a chance we can win this pool, but don't forget Ireland are a tough team and can fight back.

- the above-mentioned Loffreda.

We can't say we can beat anyone because it's not true. Everything demands a lot of work from us. But against France we were convinced we were going to win and now we are in a position to say we will beat Ireland.

We didn't analyse the match between Ireland and France but pressure will be on both sides. It's the last match, so there will be even more pressure.

- the Argentina fullback Ignacio Corleto.