Italy's bid for best-ever Six Nations suffers setback

Italy will be without their scrum anchor, Simone Ferrari, for Saturday’s match against Wales after the versatile prop suffered a back injury in the Azzurri’s historic 23-18 win over England in Rome.

The Federation of Italian Rugby (FIR) issued a medical bulletin on Monday morning, confirming that the tight-head had suffered a ‘cervical spine strain’ in the 51st minute of the match.

Ferrari, who once spent 14 months on the sidelines due to a knee injury, between 2021-22, has played a keep part in laying the foundations for Italy’s success.

Home wins over Scotland and now England have put the Italians in a great position to register three wins for the first time and better their previous best points total of 11 in a single Six Nations championship. They are currently in fourth place on nine with a visit to bottom-of-the-table Wales as their final assignment.

The Benetton player, who turns 32 later this month, has started every game in this year’s Six Nations and has only missed one of Italy’s last 23 Tests.

In the opening round win against Scotland, Ferrari was named Player of the Match, a rare accolade for a prop forward.

The FIR said: “The player will be unavailable for the match against Wales on Saturday, March 14th. Ferrari will return to Benetton Rugby and continue his rehabilitation with his club’s medical staff in collaboration with the national team staff.”