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'When the Wasps fans see him they'll say 'he's small' but so is Kolbe and Jason Robinson'

By Chris Jones
Minozzi has been likened to Jason Robinson

Italy fullback and new Wasps signing Matteo Minozzi will signal the end of an 11-month battle to overcome a horrific knee ligament injury by facing Ireland at the Aviva Stadium on August 10 to prove he is ready to set the Rugby World Cup alight in Japan.

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Coach Conor O’Shea believes Minozzi can become one of the stand out players at the World Cup thanks to a potent combination of pace and electric footwork drawing comparisons with Jason Robinson, England’s 2003 World Cup-winning wing, who is also 5ft 7ins tall. With Italy’s Cup pool including New Zealand, South Africa, Canada and Namibia, O’Shea will need all of his attacking weapons fully fit.

Minozzi suffered the ACL knee injury playing for Zebre and it required two operations and a long period of rehabilitation to get the full back fit again and his return is also great news for Wasps who have signed the Italian to fill the void created by the departure of Wille le Roux, the Springbok fullback, who was such a key member of their attack.

Italy will spend next week in Limerick ahead of their first warm-up game against Ireland and they are also taking on Russia, France and England before heading to Japan. O’Shea, who yesterday confirmed Zebre captain Tommaso Castello is out of the Cup, cannot hide his excitement at having Minozzi back in the squad. The fullback scored four tries in five games and was nominated for the 2018 Six Nations Player of the Tournament.

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Now, with ten tests to his name the 23-year-old Wasps fullback is aiming to become the latest “small guy” to make a big impression following in the bootprints of Robinson and Toulouse’s Cheslin Kolbe. O’Shea told RugbyPass: “Matteo will be on the bench against Ireland and he is the quickest player in our squad. He is a mercurial player who has worked so hard to get back from a horrific injury. He has his speed and agility back and everyone in rugby will be delighted to see Matteo back on the pitch.

“You get players like Matteo coming along every once in a while and he although he is not the biggest, he can do things others can’t. When the Wasps fans see him they will say “he’s small” but so is Kolbe and Jason Robinson. These guys remind you that it’s not all about being a big a bulldozer. Matteo is a boy who was born to play rugby and can see things other can’t. You cannot coach that – it’s what makes them special. Some players train like Tarzan and play like Jane. Matteo trains and plays like Tarzan.”

O’Shea is unhappy with the short turnaround between their opening two Cup games with Namibia and Canada and wants the situation addressed for future tournaments. “We face a colossal challenge in our Pool but If we can get our best XV on the park then on any given day we can take on anyone. We are not delusional and are third favourites to get out of our Pool but we have x-factor players like Minozzi, Jayden Hayward, Tommy Allan, Sergio Parisse and Jake Polledri .

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“We have Namibia and Canada in the space of four days at the start of our Cup campaign and we know they will be targeting us. To prepare for the biggest event for any rugby player and have to play two games in four days is something that has to be looked at. We will be traveling for four or five hours after the Namibia match. This is the fittest Italian squad there has been and we had to start this at the beginning of June and across the board we are in a good situation.

“We will finalise when our 31 man squad for the World Cup will be named after we play Ireland and there is a lot riding on the match for some players. You want to give everyone a chance to impress and push for those last few places and those selections revolve around do you take 18 forwards and 13 backs or 17 and 14? The last three or four selections give energy and balance to the squad. It has been unbelievably hot here in Italy and it will go down a bit in Ireland next week.”

Members of the Italy squad based in Treviso took part in a training session with the England players and O’Shea was pleased with the outcome. He added: “ It was very worthwhile and unlike the session England did with Georgia earlier this year it didn’t end up in any brawling. Everyone was very well behaved.”

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Trevor 2 hours ago
Will forgotten Wallabies fit the Joe Schmidt model?

Thanks Brett.. At last a positive article on the potential of Wallaby candidates, great to read. Schmidt’s record as an international rugby coach speaks for itself, I’m somewhat confident he will turn the Wallaby’s fortunes around …. on the field. It will be up to others to steady the ship off the paddock. But is there a flaw in my optimism? We have known all along that Australia has the players to be very competitive with their international rivals. We know that because everyone keeps telling us. So why the poor results? A question that requires a definitive answer before the turn around can occur. Joe Schmidt signed on for 2 years, time to encompass the Lions tour of 2025. By all accounts he puts family first and that’s fair enough, but I would wager that his 2 year contract will be extended if the next 18 months or so shows the statement “Australia has the players” proves to be correct. The new coach does not have a lot of time to meld together an outfit that will be competitive in the Rugby Championship - it will be interesting to see what happens. It will be interesting to see what happens with Giteau law, the new Wallaby coach has already verbalised that he would to prefer to select from those who play their rugby in Australia. His first test in charge is in July just over 3 months away .. not a long time. I for one wish him well .. heaven knows Australia needs some positive vibes.

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

Of the rugby I’ve born witness to in my lifetime - 1990 to date - I recognize great players throughout those years. But I have no doubt the game and the players are on average better today. So I doubt going back further is going to prove me wrong. The technical components of the game, set pieces, scrums, kicks, kicks at goal. And in general tactics employed are far more efficient, accurate and polished. Professional athletes that have invested countless hours on being accurate. There is one nation though that may be fairly competitive in any era - and that for me is the all blacks. And New Zealand players in general. NZ produces startling athletes who have fantastic ball skills. And then the odd phenomenon like Brooke. Lomu. Mcaw. Carter. Better than comparing players and teams across eras - I’ve often had this thought - that it would be very interesting to have a version of the game that is closer to its original form. What would the game look like today if the rules were rolled back. Not rules that promote safety obviously - but rules like: - a try being worth 1 point and conversion 2 points. Hence the term “try”. Earning a try at goals. Would we see more attacking play? - no lifting in the lineouts. - rucks and break down laws in general. They looked like wrestling matches in bygone eras. I wonder what a game applying 1995 rules would look like with modern players. It may be a daft exercise, but it would make for an interesting spectacle celebrating “purer” forms of the game that roll back the rules dramatically by a few versions. Would we come to learn that some of the rules/combinations of the rules we see today have actually made the game less attractive? I’d love to see an exhibition match like that.

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