Here’s the match report.
Right, a quick turnaround for me, with Wales v England next. Fortunately there is very little to say about that: a total non-contest in which few Italians enhanced their reputations and everyone played pretty well for Ireland. For those wondering, they only get one bonus point despite scoring nine.
Anyway, join me for this!
Conversion (Jackson 80) & full-time Italy 10-63 Ireland
Nine from nine for Jackson, who brings an end to proceedings with the conversion.
Try! (Girloy 80) Italy 10-61 Ireland
81 min Ireland have it just inside the Italy half as the clock goes red. Dillane and Ryan crash it up the middle then Jackson sends it on to Van der Flier, who makes more ground. Jackson tries a chip and it’s deflected back to him. McGrath, Heaslip and Ryan again carry it on before Stander drives looking for No4. He’s just short so Marmion goes to his backs and Jackson, who has been wonderful, sends a flat pass out for Gilroy, who becomes the second Irishman to bag a hat-trick today!
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79 min Ireland are going to have one more probe. As unchallenging as this might have been for Ireland, the emails I’m getting from their fans calling for Italy to be booted out the Six Nations are somewhat unedifying. People were saying the same about Scotland not that long ago and look what happened last week.
Try! (Gilroy + Jackson con 78) Italy 10-56 Ireland
Still Italian ball and still they go backwards. It’s knocked forwards eventually and Stander hoofs it up the pitch. Mbanda goes to field it but the bounce is horrible, straight back into the hands of Gilroy, who cuts inside and goes over from 45 metres. Jackson knocks over the extras.
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77 min Italy have the ball on the 22.
76 min Italy get the ball after a chip ends up in their hands and it goes left for Venditti and Biagi to make ground, crashing up to the five metre line. Back right they go but the passing isn’t accurate enough and backwards they go.
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75 min Keatley replaces Zebo.
74 min Italy recover the ball from Allan’s shallow restart and continue to probe around the fringes just inside the Irish half. Venditti almost wriggles through a tackle at the breakdown but loses the ball in doing so.
CJ Stander is named man of the match, giving everyone but me a load more fantasy rugby points.
That should say 49 in the last entry, maths fans.
Try! (Ringrose 72 + Jackson con) Italy 10-49 Ireland
McLean launches a long kick to Kearney, who comes surging back up over the 10 metre line. Dillane drives on. I reckon there’s one more try for Ireland ... oh there it is. The ball pops into Ringrose’s hands 40 metres out, he gets through some very tired tackles and scarpers off under the sticks.
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71 min Italy have stolen the lineout but been forced back into what I think is their own 22 – it’s a bad camera angle. The subsequent breakdown is an unholy mess and Italy get the scrum as the ball was unplayable. Marmion and Van der Flier are on, I think O’Brien is off, as is Murray. Allan on for Canna for Italy.
70 min Italy’s ploy of not kicking to touch has been a poor one, by the way as their defence has been run ragged. Earls chips ahead, Canna clears to touch around halfway.
Try! (Gilroy 68 + Jackson con) Italy 10-42 Ireland
A couple of poor kicks then Padovani loses it in the tackle. O’Brien sets off to his right and sucks in the straggling defenders. It’s popped right along the line, Gilroy cuts inside Campagnaro and jogs under the posts.
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67 min They’re still on the 22. After 15 or so phases Jackson chips across but Venditti catches and calls the mark.
66 min Dillane gets over the gain-line then they go left to Zebo, but for once he can’t find any space. We continue to go through the phases. Or rather the players do.
65 min “Angle” says Jackson, penalising the new man Panico for driving at one. Jackson kicks to touch just outside the 22, on the left. Dillane taps down and Stander drives into contact, taking it to within a metre or two of the 22. It’s all gone a bit flat for Ireland.
64 min From the scrum, Mbanda takes a bouncing ball that slipped out of Campagnaro’s hands and thinks he is away. The bad news for him is that it is adjudged to have bounced forwards. Panico is on for Lovotti.
Bad news Wales.
Wales wing George North is OUT of this afternoon's #SixNations game v England after failing to recover from leg injury. Alex Cuthbert starts pic.twitter.com/ZWwjV1nmht
— BBC Wales Sport (@BBCWalesSport) February 11, 2017
62 min From the lineout on halfway it goes high and Gilroy takes well, but it’s spilled by Irish hands at the next breakdown. Italy scrum just inside the Irish half. James Tracy is on for Scannell just in time for this scrum.
61 min Ireland are penalised for McGrath’s failure to drive straight. Dillane is on for Toner, Bronzini for Gori.
60 min Italy’s scrum is walking backwards, up pops the front row and they’re probably slightly fortunate that ref Jackson only says reset.
59 min Italy have a scrum midway inside their 22. It looks like a swinging Italian boot caught Chistolini’s knee in the midst of the last play.
Chistolini is in some pain, didn’t see what happened as it was off camera. “The poor man can’t walk” says Glen Jackson, so Cittadini returns. Not sure the former Wasp will be too happy about this.
58 min Terrible lineout, to the front and Fuser is driven into touch. Toner wins quick ball and Ringrose takes it into the 22 before offloading to Earls. Recycled quickly and Jackson flings a long pass wide for Gilroy but it’s forwards. Remarkable effort from Gilroy to try and throw it back in play before overrunning into touch, but in vain.
57 min Toner pinches the lineout and go left, allowing Zebo to look for space. He has none so grubbers ahead and it bobbles into touch midway inside the Italian half. Steyn on for Favaro.
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56 min That’s a better scrum from Italy and they get a penalty, which Gori takes quickly and scuttles up to the five metre line. Back inside it comes for Parisse, just under the posts but he turns over and Murray boots it clear, up to the 22 and into touch on the Italian left.
55 min Italy go left then Canna switches it back inside to Campagnaro. There is a knock on and Italy have the advantage but their backs are standing too deep. Canna loses it under pressure from Ringrose but we go back for the knock-on, just outside the 22 and tight to the left-hand touchline.
Matt Dony is with us: “Through some spectacularly bad planning, I missed most of the Wales games last week while driving from West Wales to Ashford on the way to France. And I’ll miss most of the game today driving back in the other direction. I’m only just checking up on this game now while taking a break so 5 yr old can run off some pent up sitting-in-a-car-for-best-part-of-a-day-and-half energy. Where was this Italy performance last week? And, I wonder if I can convince my exhausted, grumpy family to take a ‘quick’ detour in to Cardiff? I mean, it’s not far off the M4...”
54 min Furlong off, Ryan on.
53 min Canna loops around but then Padovani is smashed by Ringrose. The Leinsterman knocked it on in the tackle though, so it’s an Italy scrum smack bang in the middle of the Irish half.
52 min Now Italy have some territory for the first time in this half and Radiohead fan Padovani sidesteps his way up to the 22, before Campagnaro makes a bit more ground burrowing down the right. Back left they come but then Gilroy disrupts the movement. Italy do well to retain possession.
51 min McGrath is on for Healy.
Des Maxwell writes: “Really, Mr. Lucas? You dropped CJ from your fantasy team and you don’t like The Killers. I’m being to suffer a dearth of respect for my otherwise faithful correspondent.” Sorry.
50 min Chipped over the top and Earls gives chase, grubbering on into the in-goal area. The chase is on for Ringrose but new man Campagnaro is able to get there first and dot down. The restart is taken by Stander, then Earls kicks ahead and it’s back in Italian hands but only just outside the 22. McLean kicks long and then a poor pass from Kearney forces Gilroy to knock on out wide, just inside his own half.
49 min Campagnaro replaces Benvenuti.
48 min Murray puts it up and Parisse takes it on halfway under pressure from Zebo. Back to Canna and his cross-kick is enormously overcooked. Out it goes on the full. Gilroy comes on for Henshaw. Quick ball off the lineout just inside the Italy half and then Padovani can’t field Kearney’s hard grubber kick. Scrum Ireland, midway inside the Italy half.
Conversion (Jackson 47) Italy 10-35 Ireland
I shouldn’t have dropped Stander from my fantasy team, should I? Gega and Biagi replace Ghiraldini and Van Schalkwyk.
Try! (Stander 46) Italy 10-33 Ireland
Quick ball and they go left, with Kearney up in the line and taking contact. Donnacha Ryan comes back on. Heaslip barrels up to the 22, but at the next phase the ball is disrupted well by Favaro looking to intercept. It’s still with Ireland though and Stander, on the 22, spots a gap, steps through it and sizzles through to the line! A hat-trick to the flanker!
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44 min Right now and Ringrose makes headway at pace down the right. He’s tackled then Murray flips a short box kick over the top for Henshaw to chase. Padovani is alert to it though and this time McLean does go for touch with a big clearance, into touch on the Ireland right just inside the Italian half.
43 min Grubbered through and Canna fields in his 22 near touch. This time it’s Padovani who clears and Kearney runs back, up to the 10 metre line.
42 min Scannell throws, Toner takes and the hooker has it at the back of the maul. To Italy’s relief it goes nowhere and the ball shoots out, allowing Favaro to dive on it. McLean clears down the middle again.
41 min PEEEEP! Jackson restarts, McLean scuffs his clearance back to the No10 down the middle and Kearney takes it into Chistolini’s tackle. Immediately, Favaro goes off his feet and concedes a penalty, which Jackson puts into the 22 on the left.
Italy have made a change: Chistolini is on for Cittadini.
Italy’s defence was impeccable in the first half against Wales last weekend. Today it has been pretty damn abysmal.
Half-time: Italy 10-28 Ireland
Scannell overthrows, Henshaw knocks on and that, to Italy’s relief, is the half.
40 min Jackson kicks the penalty to touch down the right, finding it midway inside the Italian half with 15 seconds to go in the half. Time for one last play.
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39 min Mbanda and Esposito make ground down the right, before it comes back inside for Ghiraldini. They’re enjoying the ball now Italy, but doing nothing with it. Then McLean is penalised for holding on on the ground.
38 min This is slightly encouraging, he says without trying to patronise the Italians. Favaro loops round and takes it out wide before making good ground at pace down the right. Back left they go, but then McLean puts a poor kick across and Kearney dots down for the 22 drop-out.
37 min Cleared to touch and Italy get it from the lineout on halfway. They go left and Parisse carries through a couple of tackles and over the 10 metre line, before it goes right and Favaro makes a bit more ground.
Ireland have a bonus point by the way.
Conversion (Jackson 36) Italy 10-28 Ireland
That’s the easiest of the lot.
Try! (Stander
McLean clears long from the restart, down the middle, and Kearney goes high with the return. Parisse is under it but there was a man offside at the initial clearance. It’s an easy shot at goal but we’re beyond that now and Jackson finds touch 10 metres out on the right. Heaslip takes Scannell’s throw and has it at the back of a big maul. Stander peels off it and a second mini-maul forms. It has few problems barrelling over.
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Conversion (Canna 33) Italy 10-21 Ireland
Donnacha Ryan was sent to the sin-bin too.
Penalty try! Italy 8-21 Ireland
Ireland attempt to shuffle the maul towards the touchline, but Heaslip pulls it down and it’s another penalty. Game of Thrones’ Jon Snow McLean sticks it in the bottom-right hand corner and again Parisse takes the throw. A might maul forms, down it comes and Jackson immediately marches under the posts! Good refereeing that.
30 min Ireland look to make a nuisance of themselves once the ball is out but, in doing so, fail to roll away. McLean boots it to touch down the Italy right, finding touch inside the 22 where Parisse takes the lineout.
29 min Cleared to touch from the restart and though Italy win the subsequent lineout, it’s filthy ball as Stander gets up with Van Schalkwyk. The flankers disruptive hand concedes the knock-on though.
From the unfortunately named Alastair Trump: “Italian rugby hasn’t made sufficient progress in the last 5 years. They should be in a second tier 5/6 nations with Romania, Portugal etc. I can’t even watch this game anymore its so one sided. Obviously Parisse should be allowed a ‘transfer’ to any country in Europe, the world, universe...”
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Conversion (Jackson 28) Italy 3-21 Ireland
Another touchline effort, then, for young Paddy Jackson and not for nothing does he have a career success rate of about 81%.
Try! (Earls 26) Italy 3-19 Ireland
Ireland keep it tight for now, with Heaslip and Furlong, you’ll be shocked to hear, carrying it into contact. Now into the backs and Jackson gives it right to Ringrose, on to Earls and into the corner he goes. This is so, so easy.
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25 min Ringrose to Zebo and he’s got free reign out there: zipping left and right off the sidestep and fizzing into the 22 down the left flank. Tackled and they recycle, driving to within 10.
24 min Taken by Heaslip and Ireland spin it right, where Ringrose takes it into contact. Left they go now and Henshaw fizzes a pass to Zebo, perhaps too fast and not quite accurate enough, and Zebo knocks it into touch. From the lineout though, after Parisse had won it, Ghiraldini knocks on.
23 min Gori sends a looping pass out wide to absolutely no one. Padovani steps up and takes it on the bounce, but his foot slips out into touch. Not great this from Italy.
22 min Italy come out of this scrum unscathed and go down the blindside. No space there, so they spread it right. Nowt there either.
21 min This could be a long day for Italy. From the restart, Ireland spread it left to right along the 22, then Earls kicks ahead low. He can’t keep it in though and Italy will have their first lineout, five inside the Ireland half and on the left. It’s a poor throw from Ghiraldini, but it deflects forwards off the fingertips of Toner.
Conversion (Jackson 20) Italy 3-14 Ireland
Right on the left-hand touchline, Jackson scuffs it miserably. And yet somehow, it limps through!
Try! (Stander 18) Italy 3-12 Ireland
Lovely offload out the tackle and out the back of the hand from Heaslip, after a neat step, to Henshaw and the No12 arcs round the right and makes ground. Jackson has a go and another penalty is coming. Again though Ireland don’t need it: left to Zebo, out again to Stander and he is near enough unchallenged as he crosses.
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17 min Jackson’s restart is shallow and Scannell rips it back on to the Irish side from the ruck. Ireland carry it up to the 22 far, far too easily then Kearney steps inside and looks for a gap. Favaro is wise to him though. Through the phases they go, with Italy holding firm for the time being.
Penalty (Canna 16) Italy 3-7 Ireland
Well that was a freebie.
“Afternoon Dan.” Afternoon, Simon McMahon. “Being a great singer is a strange thing, isn’t it? Requiring a certain je ne sais quoi. Thom Yorke, Wayne Coyne, Bob Dylan, Willie Nelson, James Blunt, the Ireland rugby team. Ireland by 40.”
15 min Toner takes in the restart, Murray clears from the 22 but doesn’t get any distance and Esposito gathers. They go left and Henshaw goes for the interception, but Ireland were offside from Murray’s box kick and Italy have an opportunity to grab three points straight back. It will be Canna from fairly wide out, around five outside the 22.
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Conversion (Jackson 14) Italy 0-7 Ireland
From wide on the right, Jackson sends it straight as an arrow through the posts.
Try! (Earls 12) Italy 0-5 Ireland
Zebo is fit to continue it seems. Jackson takes it into contact, Stander drives on and Italy, on their last warning, are offside again. No matter as another phase sees the ball out into the hands of Jackson, standing flat, and he gives it wide to Earls for the simplest of finishes from five metres.
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11 min Whipped out left behind the decoy runner and quick hands send it out to Zebo. He nips round the outside and dives for the line, but loses it under pressure from Gori as he attempts to finish. He’s landed awkwardly on his shoulder too and this is bad news for my fantasy rugby team Ireland. The men in green have yet another penalty for offside though and will take a scrum. Five metres out, under the posts.
10 min Ireland get the shove on then go right to Jackson. Recycled quickly but it’s not clean and it’s backwards to Scannell. Heaslip, then Furlong pile towards the line, then Murray snipes, just short...
9 min The ball gets stuck in the ruck and so we go back for an Irish penalty, for offside. Heaslip decides to go for the scrum.
8 min It doesn’t and Ireland pile into the defence in midfield, driving up to within a couple of metres of the posts...
7 min 10 metres out, Murray pops it to Zebo coming in off his wing. It’s recycled and Ghrialdini, making the tackle, knocks on again. Ireland scrum six metres out and 16 in from the left-hand touchline. This could go down the short side to Zebo I reckon.
6 min Parisse picks it up at the back but knocks on under enormous pressure, with his own pack falling backwards on top of him. Great chance now for Ireland.
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5 min With no room away from the touchline at all, Zebo twists and turns past Canna. Up to the 22, but then an accidental offside at the ruck and Italy will have another scrum. They’ll want it to go better than last time, no doubt.
4 min Taken down quickly and Henshaw takes it into contact. Murray, on the loop around tries to grubber through. It deflects back up into his hands so he does so again and Vendittit gathers it. Cleared by McLean, returned by Kearney and, eventually, Padovani clears long to Jackson.
3 min Healy does one on Lovotti, forcing the Italian up and winning a penalty against the head. It’s tight to the touchline, so Zebo takes it, left-footed and finds touch around the 22.
Kick-off!
1 min Former Saracen Glen Jackson is the man with the whistle today and he does the honours, giving the whistle a good PEEP! and Canna gets round two under way! In the 22 it goes and Zebo takes. Up goes the box kick from Murray and Zebo takes again near halfway. Right from Murray and O’Brien crashes it into the midfield before Ringrose bursts over halfway. A busy start from Ireland but then it’s knocked on in the tight, out wide on the right.
@DanLucas86 Ireland's Call "Ireland! Ireland!" Chorus is just to let the pissed people now who they're supposed to be supporting isn't it?
— (((AndyinBrum))) (@AndyinBrum) February 11, 2017
The ocean of green is a giveaway, too.
A minute’s silence for Joost, then we’ll kick off.
Anthems watch: No matter how rousing Ireland’s Call may be, I’m not sure I’ve ever heard a worse group of singers than their players. And I’ve seen The Killers.
Here come the players! It has stopped raining in Rome, which makes it a hell of a lot nicer than London.
That tattoo on Padovani. Outstanding. In a way that no Englishman could ever carry off @DanLucas86
— Guy Hornsby (@GuyHornsby) February 11, 2017
Conor O’Shea has (not quite) said he wants Italy to be fitter, happier, more productive.
I’ve been sent a picture! David Edwards noticed this tattoo on Italy’s Edoardo Padovani during the Wales game last week. Padovani being a Radiohead fan sort of makes me want Italy to win this one.
@DanLucas86 if we don't win by a least 25 there'll be one of these in Dublin Limerick Galway & Belfast waiting 4 the players! pic.twitter.com/bpJDNfPTwz
— John McEnerney (@MackerOnTheMed) February 11, 2017
Joe Schmidt has told his players he wants a fast start today. Against Italy’s rush defence that could be difficult, although there will be gaps for the likes of Jackson and Ringrose to exploit if they’re on top form.
Elsewhere on the Guardian today, this is better than anything I’ll write, to be honest.
We have 50 minutes until kick-off, which is plenty of time for you to be getting lost in a YouTube wormhole. To help you/give you an excuse, this week’s edition of Classic YouTube pays loving tribute to Joost van der Westhuizen, who sadly died on Monday.
Meanwhile Rob Kitson pays tribute with this very nice piece.
When I was younger I couldn’t stand to see Joost’s name on the teamsheet when South Africa played England. I knew that he would always make the game miserable for England, so ultra abrasive and competitive would he be. As Brian O’Driscoll has just said on the telly, he was the prototype modern scrum-half, paving the way for the likes of Conor Murray today. What a man he was.
Glendenning smashes it out the park.
Man who claims to have never read a word of Harry Potter quotes liberally from Harry Potter book https://t.co/DhSD0bck9q
— Barry Glendenning (@bglendenning) February 11, 2017
Preamble
Afternoon, folks. Last Sunday, Conor O’Shea said performances were more important than results and that he was focussed on getting a full 80-minute performance out of his team. “We need to be there after 80 minutes, fighting” he said. In the 78th minute, George North romped home from 80 metres despite only having the use of one leg for Wales’s third try to seal a 33-7 win.
The most disappointing thing for Italy is that they had been the better team in the first half and deservedly led at the break. Sergio Parisse had as good a first 40 minutes as you’ll see from a loose forward. Brendan Venter’s defence smothered Wales’s ball-carriers and poor old Dan Biggar had a bit of a nightmare. Sadly for the Italians, hosts then and again today, the wheels came off when Sam Davies came on and attacked the line.
Ireland, like Wales, made a second-half comeback on the opening weekend but this one wasn’t enough, as Scotland held their nerve after Stuart Hogg and co and shredded the men in green in the first half. Ireland secured the Six Nations’ first ever bonus point but it was in a losing cause and they very much have a point to prove today, given their title hopes will be all but dashed should the Italians cause an upset.
Joe Schmidt has resisted any urge to make big changes though. Two of the three are injury-enforced – Donnacha Ryan coming in for Iain Henderson and Rory Best is a late withdrawal – and the other slightly surprising, with Cian Healy replacing Jack McGrath despite Ireland’s scrum superiority over the Scots. Other than that, there’s no comeback for Johnny Sexton after his calf injury, which isn’t a huge loss given how well Paddy Jackson played in his stead last week. I’ve also got Jackson as my Fantasy Six Nations captain this week, so here’s hoping he does well.
Team Update: @RoryBest2 ruled out. @N_Scannell222 to start with James Tracy on the bench. #TeamOfUs #shouldertoshoulder pic.twitter.com/oCgZxw1znA
— Irish Rugby (@IrishRugby) February 11, 2017
Italy on the other hand have shaken things up, which will come as no surprise to anyone who has watched them in the Six Nations for the past few years. Angelo Esposito is on the wing, with Simone Favaro, Leonardo Ghiraldini and Andries van Schalkwyk all into a pack that started well against Wales but was soon found out.
Kick-off for this one is at 2.25pm GMT, or 3.25pm Rome time, for some reason. My money is on Ireland to win this by 20+ and pick up the four-try bonus point, but what do I know? Here are your teams in full.
Italy: 15-Edoardo Padovani, 14-Angelo Esposito, 13-Tommaso Benvenuti, 12-Luke Mclean, 11-Giovanbattista Venditti, 10-Carlo Canna, 9-Edoardo Gori; 1-Andrea Lovotti, 2-Leonardo Ghiraldini, 3-Lorenzo Cittadini, 4-Marco Fuser, 5-Andries Van Schalkwyk, 6-Maxime Mbanda, 7-Simone Favaro, 8-Sergio Parisse.
Replacements: 16-Ornel Gega, 17-Sami Panico, 18-Dario Chistolini, 19-George Biagi, 20-Abraham Steyn, 21-Giorgio Bronzini, 22-Tommaso Allan, 23-Michele Campagnaro.
Ireland: 15-Rob Kearney, 14-Keith Earls, 13-Garry Ringrose, 12-Robbie Henshaw, 11-Simon Zebo, 10-Paddy Jackson, 9-Conor Murray; 1-Cian Healy, 2-Niall Scannell, 3-Tadhg Furlong, 4-Donnacha Ryan, 5-Devin Toner, 6-CJ Stander, 7-Sean O’Brien, 8-Jamie Heaslip (captain).
Replacements: 16-James Tracy, 17-Jack McGrath, 18-John Ryan, 19-Ultan Dillane, 20-Josh van der Flier, 21-Kieran Marmion, 22-Ian Keatley, 23-Craig Gilroy.
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