Italy player ratings vs Ireland | 2026 Guinness Men’s Six Nations

Italy player ratings: Italy fell short of their first-ever win over Ireland in Dublin on Saturday, losing 20-13 in round two of the Guinness Six Nations.

Having beaten Scotland last week, Gonzalo Quesada’s side arrived with real confidence and played like it, going in at half time in the lead.

Ireland, aided by a high-class bench, were able to pull away in the second half, however. But this was another strong showing by Italy. Here’s how the players rated:

15. Lorenzo Pani – 7
Mixed results under the high ball, but showed real ambition counter-attacking. One superb break in the first half nearly unlocked Ireland, but lacked a decisive final touch. Simply had to stop Robert Baloucoune as the Irish took the lead on the hour mark.

14. Louis Lynagh – 6
Lively early on and chased everything, but struggled to impose himself once Ireland tightened up. Limited opportunities, though he defended bravely. Yellow-carded for a deliberate knock-on, although the try was his had he claimed it. Put his side under a lot of pressure when he failed to claim a spiral bomb, but the Azzurri survived.

13. Tommaso Menoncello – 8
Carried with venom, won collisions he had no right to, and caused Ireland persistent midfield headaches. His break and floated pass for Louis Lynagh’s try was world class, only for it to be chalked off for going forward. Defended expertly when Ireland tried to put some width on the ball. Deserved to be on the winning side.

12. Leonardo Marin – 6
Mixed bag. Distributed well in patches, with a deft offload to almost put Pani in for a try, but had the ball ripped from him metres from the line when the Italians could have stretched their lead before the break. Slipped off some tackles, seven, but spearheaded an aggressive defence which harassed Sam Prendergast.

11. Monty Ioane – 6
A constant threat with ball in hand. Beat defenders, asked questions and worked tirelessly off his wing. Didn’t get the chances he would have wanted, though, inside the Irish 22. Threw the interception at the death to secure Ireland’s win.

10. Paolo Garbisi – 7
Managed the game intelligently and kicked his goals, keeping Italy in touching distance throughout. Composed under pressure, though Ireland just edged the tactical duel late on. Was able to put the Irish defence under a lot of pressure when wrapping behind his forwards, and could ship the ball into the wider channels with well-strung passes. His little dink in the closing minutes left Ireland scrambling, but just wasn’t enough.

9. Alessandro Fusco – 7
Tempo was good around the fringes and his service mostly crisp. A couple of loose kicks handed Ireland territory at key moments. Close to an interception in the opening exchanges, which was a sign of the intense Italian defence.

1. Danilo Fischetti – 8
Busy in the loose and showed real grit. Penalised in the first scrum exchange, but come the end of the first half, he was getting the better of Thomas Clarkson and simply melted the Irish pack with a scrum at the end of the first half. Such was his dominance that Clarkson was replaced at the break.

2. Giacomo Nicotera – 7
Lineout functioned well enough and he tackled his heart out, although his over-exuberance manifested in an offside penalty in his 22. Made amends immediately by reading Dan Sheehan’s attempt to jump and score a try. Work-rate unquestionable, and darted over for Italy’s first try, peeling off the back of a maul.

3. Simone Ferrari – 8
Ferrari by name, bulldozer by nature. Set the tone with a huge tackle on Garry Ringrose in the opening minutes and took a few more names. An equally massive scrummaging effort, winning a penalty on the stroke of half time and replicated that after the break.

4. Niccolò Cannone – 6
Physical and industrious. Put himself about in tight exchanges and disrupted Irish ball where he could.

5. Andrea Zambonin – 7
Carried hard without always winning the gain-line. Put in a shift defensively, with 16 tackles during his hour on the field, but lacked a defining moment. Was almost the sole option in every lineout for Italy, but that didn’t mean Ireland were able to disrupt it.

6. Michele Lamaro – 8
Led from the front. Relentless over the ball and ferocious in contact, but would want to have another shot on Jack Conan again. A captain’s performance that nearly inspired a famous win. Massive counter ruck and turnover just metres from his line in the first half and produced another expert steal in the second.

7. Manuel Zuliani – 8
Energetic and intelligent in the defensive line. Made several key tackles, but was brushed aside by Stuart McCloskey for the first try of the match, with the centre able to spin out of the tackle and offload. All action, with 16 tackles, 10 carries and, crucially, five turnovers, including a superb rip in the tackle to give Italy momentum.

8. Lorenzo Cannone – 6
A match-leading 18 tackles when he left the field after 66 minutes was a key part to Italy’s competitiveness, four of which were dominant tackles. Offered little in attack, however.

Points Flow Chart

Ireland win +7

Time in lead

44

Mins in lead

10

53%

% Of Game In Lead

12%

29%

Possession Last 10 min

71%

0

Points Last 10 min

0

Replacements
16. Tommaso Di Bartolomeo – 5
Brought fresh energy but immediately lost a lineout after coming on.

17. Mirco Spagnolo – 7.5
Solid in the scrum, lifting Tadhg Furlong about a metre and a half in the air in one scrum, and busy defensively during a tense final quarter.

18. Muhamed Hasa – 7
Added ballast at the scrum and didn’t take a backward step.

19. Federico Ruzza – 6
Quiet cameo from the bench.

20. Riccardo Favretto – 6
High work-rate in tight exchanges as Ireland looked to close it out.

21. David Odiase – 6
Injected tempo and carried well but couldn’t quite spark the decisive break.

22. Alessandro Garbisi – 6
Tried to stretch Ireland late on and distributed neatly, though space was at a premium.

23. Paolo Odogwu – 6.5
Carried with intent in the final 15 minutes and nearly forced something dramatic at the death.