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Italy v France: Everything you need to know

By Nicholas McGee
England’s Ben Youngs is confronted by Italy defenders

A game between the two bottom sides in the Six Nations would normally not provide too much intrigue, but there should be plenty of spectators interested in Italy’s tactics when they host France on Saturday.

Italy remain without a point having lost each of their three games to start the campaign.

But the Azzurri head into their penultimate match having provoked both admiration and anger with the tactics they used in a 36-15 defeat to holders England. 

For long periods it looked as if Italy were in position to stunningly end England’s 16-match winning run as they baffled Eddie Jones’ men by not committing men to the ruck, meaning there was no offside line and the Azzurri forwards were free to step across and cut down the space available to their opponents.

The ploy left Jones furious, and a France side whose only win so far came against Scotland will not be taking Italy lightly as a result.

Defeats against England and Ireland have left France’s hopes of regaining the title looking extremely slim, but Les Bleus will be keen to finish strongly regardless and prove the signs of progress they displayed in the end-of-year internationals in 2016 were not false dawns.

HEAD TO HEAD

Italy: 3

France: 35

Draw: 0

 

WHAT HAPPENED IN 2016?

France started their previous Six Nations campaign with an unconvincing victory over Italy at the Stade de France. Jules Plisson’s late penalty salvaged a 23-21 win for Les Bleus after Sergio Parisse and Carlo Canna had edged the Azzurri ahead.

 

KEY PLAYERS

Maxime Mbanda (Italy)

It was Italy’s controversial defensive tactics that caught the eye at Twickenham, and if they are to keep France at bay then flanker Mbanda will be key. He has made the third-most tackles (46) in the competition, while the two players above him on the list – Jonny Gray and Kevin Gourdon – have played 57 minutes more than him.

Louis Picamoles (France)

France’s game is built on their massive pack and the star among the forwards has been back row Picamoles, who leads the way in defenders beaten (13) and offloads (9) in the Six Nations this year. His 235 metres gained are the most by any forward in the tournament.

 

THE LINE-UPS

Italy: Edoardo Padovani, Angelo Esposito, Michele Campagnaro, Luke McLean, Giovanbattista Venditti, Carlo Canna, Edoardo Gori; Andrea Lovotti, Leonardo Ghiraldini, Lorenzo Cittadini, Marco Fuser, Dries van Schalkwyk, Braam Steyn, Simone Favaro, Sergio Parisse (captain).

France: Brice Dulin, Noa Nakaitaci, Remi Lamerat, Gael Fickou, Virimi Vakatawa, Camille Lopez, Baptiste Serin; Cyril Baille, Guilhem Guirado (captain), Rabah Slimani, Julien Le Devedec, Yoann Maestri, Fabien Sanconnie, Kevin Gourdon, Louis Picamoles.

 

COACH COMMENTS

Conor O’Shea (Italy): “The great Italian side of the ’90s was a horrible side to play against. It was physical, it was in your face. We have to be horrible to play against and then we can evolve. By the 2019 World Cup I want us to be the team that no one wants in their pool.”

Guy Noves (France): “We don’t have the means to boast, to be a bit like England; to play Italy and look down on them. Our results don’t let us do that. Therefore I hope that the players are well aware that Italy have got this match marked down. That’s normal, especially after their performance in England.”

 

OPTA STATS

– Italy have lost their last 10 games in the Six Nations, only once have they gone on a longer such run (14 – 2000-2002); in fact only four times in the history of the Five/Six Nations has any team gone on a longer losing run (France 17, Scotland 15, France and Italy 14).

– Italy have lost their last nine home games in the Six Nations, this after winning four of six in Rome immediately before that; another defeat would equal the Five/Six Nations record for consecutive home defeats (France – 10, 1911-1921).

– Les Bleus’ last away win in the Six Nations came in Rome in 2015. Since then they have lost five on the bounce away from home, their worst run since losing the same amount between 1956 and 1958.

– France have scored just two tries in total so far. They have never scored fewer than six in a Six Nations campaign.

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Jon 6 hours ago
Jake White: Are modern rugby players actually better?

This is the problem with conservative mindsets and phycology, and homogenous sports, everybody wants to be the same, use the i-win template. Athlete wise everyone has to have muscles and work at the gym to make themselves more likely to hold on that one tackle. Do those players even wonder if they are now more likely to be tackled by that player as a result of there “work”? Really though, too many questions, Jake. Is it better Jake? Yes, because you still have that rugby of ole that you talk about. Is it at the highest International level anymore? No, but you go to your club or checkout your representative side and still engage with that ‘beautiful game’. Could you also have a bit of that at the top if coaches encouraged there team to play and incentivized players like Damian McKenzie and Ange Capuozzo? Of course we could. Sadly Rugby doesn’t, or didn’t, really know what direction to go when professionalism came. Things like the state of northern pitches didn’t help. Over the last two or three decades I feel like I’ve been fortunate to have all that Jake wants. There was International quality Super Rugby to adore, then the next level below I could watch club mates, pulling 9 to 5s, take on the countries best in representative rugby. Rugby played with flair and not too much riding on the consequences. It was beautiful. That largely still exists today, but with the world of rugby not quite getting things right, the picture is now being painted in NZ that that level of rugby is not required in the “pathway” to Super Rugby or All Black rugby. You might wonder if NZR is right and the pathway shouldn’t include the ‘amateur’, but let me tell you, even though the NPC might be made up of people still having to pull 9-5s, we know these people still have dreams to get out of that, and aren’t likely to give them. They will be lost. That will put a real strain on the concept of whether “visceral thrill, derring-do and joyful abandon” type rugby will remain under the professional level here in NZ. I think at some point that can be eroded as well. If only wanting the best athlete’s at the top level wasn’t enough to lose that, shutting off the next group, or level, or rugby players from easy access to express and showcase themselves certainly will. That all comes back around to the same question of professionalism in rugby and whether it got things right, and rugby is better now. Maybe the answer is turning into a “no”?

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j
john 9 hours ago
Will the Crusaders' decline spark a slow death for New Zealand rugby?

But here in Australia we were told Penney was another gun kiwi coach, for the Tahs…….and yet again it turned out the kiwi coach was completely useless. Another con job on Australian rugby. As was Robbie Deans, as was Dave Rennie. Both coaches dumped from NZ and promoted to Australia as our saviour. And the Tahs lap them up knowing they are second rate and knowing that under pressure when their short comings are exposed in Australia as well, that they will fall in below the largest most powerful province and choose second rate Tah players to save their jobs. As they do and exactly as Joe Schmidt will do. Gauranteed. Schmidt was dumped by NZ too. That’s why he went overseas. That why kiwi coaches take jobs in Australia, to try and prove they are not as bad as NZ thought they were. Then when they get found out they try and ingratiate themselves to NZ again by dragging Australian teams down with ridiculous selections and game plans. NZ rugby’s biggest problem is that it can’t yet transition from MCaw Cheatism. They just don’t know how to try and win on your merits. It is still always a contest to see how much cheating you can get away with. Without a cheating genius like McCaw, they are struggling. This I think is why my wise old mate in NZ thinks Robertson will struggle. The Crusaders are the nursery of McCaw Cheatism. Sean Fitzpatrick was probably the father of it. Robertson doesn’t know anything else but other countries have worked it out.

36 Go to comments
A
Adrian 11 hours ago
Will the Crusaders' decline spark a slow death for New Zealand rugby?

Thanks Nick The loss of players to OS, injury and retirement is certainly not helping the Crusaders. Ditto the coach. IMO Penny is there to hold the fort and cop the flak until new players and a new coach come through,…and that's understood and accepted by Penny and the Crusaders hierarchy. I think though that what is happening with the Crusaders is an indicator of what is happening with the other NZ SRP teams…..and the other SRP teams for that matter. Not enough money. The money has come via the SR competition and it’s not there anymore. It's in France, Japan and England. Unless or until something is done to make SR more SELLABLE to the NZ/Australia Rugby market AND the world rugby market the $s to keep both the very best players and the next rung down won't be there. They will play away from NZ more and more. I think though that NZ will continue to produce the players and the coaches of sufficient strength for NZ to have the capacity to stay at the top. Whether they do stay at the top as an international team will depend upon whether the money flowing to SRP is somehow restored, or NZ teams play in the Japan comp, or NZ opts to pick from anywhere. As a follower of many sports I’d have to say that the organisation and promotion of Super Rugby has been for the last 20 years closest to the worst I’ve ever seen. This hasn't necessarily been caused by NZ, but it’s happened. Perhaps it can be fixed, perhaps not. The Crusaders are I think a symptom of this, not the cause

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