No other team at the 20th World Rugby Classic can boast having as much battle-hardened experience as burgeoning rugby nation Argentina.

The Pumas, the surprise package of the 2007 Rugby World Cup, possess the most international caps at the Classic and will look to build upon their country's meteoric rise, which reached its zenith with a third-place finish in France.

Led by lock Pedro Sporleder, who played 78 times for his country and full-back Diego Cuesta Silva who amassed 65 caps, the Argentinians take on perennial challengers Australia in the competition's curtain-raiser this weekend.

Bermuda-based liaison officer for the team, Matias Gaitan, reckons the class of '07 is even better than the 2005 finalists and will feed off the current feel-good factor running through Argentinian rugby.

"We are the team with most international caps at the tournament but it's difficult to make predictions regarding the Classic," he said. "For the last few years we've had the same nucleus of players and yet we reached the final in '05 and didn't get past the first stage last year. But I do think this year's team could be better than the one that reached the final,"

Over the last decade the popularity of rugby has grown exponentially in Argentina, further encouraged with the nation reaching the semi-final of the World Cup, losing to eventual winners South Africa.

The normally football-crazed Argentines embraced the Pumas so much the Buenos Aires derby between bitter rivals Boca Juniors and River Plate was rescheduled so not to conflict with the Pumas' quarter-final match against Scotland.

"In Argentina the image of the rugby team is a heroic one," said Gaitan. "They showed a lot of character at the World Cup and currently that's a trait Argentinians feel is lacking in our football team. The team's achievement at the World Cup even pushed football off the sport pages, they did capture the imagination.

"The sport is definitely growing although it's still very much one for the middle and upper classes, that's the sector rugby is popular with."

A change in regulations allowing professionals to play for the Pumas coincided with an upturn in results in the late 90s with Argentina reaching a then unprecedented quarter-finals stage at the '99 World Cup.

Gaitan feels the relaxing of the amateur-only rule has had a major bearing on Argentina establishing themselves as a force to be reckoned with in world rugby.

"At one time there were many players playing abroad professionally, normally in France, who could not play for Argentina because of their status. That all changed in the late 90s and at the last World Cup I believe pretty much the whole squad was professional. Instead of working eight hours a day our players now train eight hours a day."

Argentina's Classic squad was due to arrive in Bermuda this morning ahead of Sunday's showdown with the Wallabies and will be stopping at the Fairmont Southampton with the majority of other teams.

"The players always enjoy coming to Bermuda and we've done so for many years," added Gaitan. "They see this sort of tournament as a way to prolong their careers. When we reached the final in '05 it even got a mention in the newspapers back home."

Australia take on Argentina at 2 p.m. at the National Sports Centre, Frog Lane, on Sunday.