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HE'S ignored the pain of a fractured ankle all year so Wallaby star Christian Lealiifano is confident he'll take the scourge of a Argentinian laser attack in his kicking stride in Rosario on Sunday.
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The addition of the Pumas to the Rugby Championship last year brought with it the introduction of South American fans shining potentially harmful green lasers on rival players' faces and the ball as they line up goal kicks.
Mike Harris and Kurtley Beale were targeted last year in Rosario, and a laser was again shone on the ball as Kiwi Aaron Cruden lined up a kick in La Plata last weekend.
SANZAR, who last year pledged to crack down on the danger, have again taken up the "unsatisfactory'' behaviour with the Argentinian Rugby Union, a spokesman said.
More laser use is expected in the Wallabies' game with the Pumas on Sunday but fittingly for a guy named Christian, Lealiifano said he was confident he could handle crowd influence in the "Coliseum"-style Estadio Gigante de Arroyito Stadium.
"We spoke about it being like the Coliseum, being really loud and a little bit hostile," Lealiifano said.
"I have enough in my process and how I go about kicking to not let it (laser use) be a distraction.
"I'm not really fussed about it. If it comes in my eyes or on the ball I've just got to really try block it out."
Lealiifano has proved his veins run cold several times this year, winning games for the Brumbies against the Bulls, and the Wallabies against the Lions in the second Test, with last-gasp match-winners.
After kicking at 78% for the Brumbies, the 26-year-old has knocked over 27 from 32 kicks (84.3%) in his first year of Test rugby.
Lealiifano hopes the same technique in blocking out noise will work with the visual distraction of a laser.
"I guess you have to try and block it out visually. I have a certain target on the ball that I look at and concentrate on the most, because that's my target area and striking zone," Leallifano said.
"If the laser is around that area it might distract me but if I stay focused on that hopefully nothing else goes wrong."
Lealiifano said he hadn't spoken with Harris or Beale for tips on how to handle being targeted by a laser.
"But maybe I will get the boys to bring some lasers out to training," he joked.
It was a light-hearted remark but the issue of lasers targeting sportsmen is of big concern to some eye experts.
In the wake of last year's Rosario attacks, leading Australia eye surgeon Dr Gerard Sutton told News Corp Australia that illegal, high-energy Chinese lasers bought from the internet had up 1000 times the power of an office pointer and could blind someone, even from distance.
Dr Sutton called for matches to be stopped until laser-wielding fans were identified and removed.
Asked if he would consider raising any potential attack with referee Wayne Barnes, Lealiifano said he may but only if the game was on the line with a kick.
Lealiifano's accuracy with the boot in 2013 is all the more remarkable given he's still got a small fracture in the ankle of his kicking foot, which failed to heal after he broke the ankle badly last season.
Given the pain he barely practices and it is likely to need surgery at the end of the year, which may see Lealiifano miss the early parts of the Super Rugby season.
"The bone's got a crack and it hasn't united back, it's a little crack in it," he said. It causes me pain during the week which is why I've got to manage things.Sometimes I do (feel it) late in games or if I've run around too much on it, I feel it but at the moment I'm getting through on adrenalin."
After arriving in Rosario and having a light training day, coach Ewen McKenzie woke the side to the rabid atmosphere players can expect this weekend by showing tapes of previous Wallabies games in Argentina.
Lealiifano said the key was staying connected, especially in defence when the home side are attacking with the roaring crowd behind their back.
The No.12 said the Wallabies were searching deep for solutions to lift them out of their current slump but added the team drew confidence from the inroads they made against the Springboks in the second half in Cape Town.
"The first half we hardly touched the ball and when we did we coughed it up or we gave it away or gave away a penalty," Lealiifano said.
"But, yeah, then the second half, we took plenty of confidence out of that. I think there's still things there in our game, we only scored one try but I think where our attacking game is going it's heading in the right direction and again key individuals in that part of the game we need to fix up.
"But definitely a lot of confidence there to continue to work on our base game and just taking the right opportunities when they come."
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