Nobody expected Italy to challenge the top of the table when they joined the competition in 2000, but the Azzurri faithful were probably hoping for at least a third place finish within a decade or so. As it stands their fourth place achievement of a year ago remains their best, with two wins as good as it gets up until now. Sadly, it’s hard to forecast anything but a few more years of disappointment given the current state of the national side.
Jacques Brunel has done an admirable job with the limited resources at his disposal, finding a good balance between continuity of selection and the introduction of new players, particularly in the backs. The forwards have remained fairly sterile for a while now, indebted more for a lack of talent putting up their hand than any refusal on the part of the coach. For this tournament it’s very much a case of same-old up front, but there is room to be excited about a new generation of Italian backs that might actually be able to use the ball that’s given to them.
Sergio Parisse, Alessandro Zanni, Martin Castrogiovanni, and soon-to-be-centurions Marco Bortolami and Mauro Bergamasco have been at the forefront of the Italian pack for the last decade, and their time is slowly winding down. Unfortunately there isn’t a great deal of exciting youngsters pushing their way through. Those that are in the mix remain unconvincing and those that show real promise are still a couple years away, so it’s up to this group to scrape through to the World Cup, for better or for worse.
Better news for Italian fans is the emergence of some backs with pace. Tommaso Benvenuti and Michele Campagnaro in the centres, Angelo Esposito and Leonardo Sarto out wide, and the utility value of Tommaso Iannone and Guglielmo Palazzani. That they will go this route is not without some necessity, as regular starters Andrea Masi, Luca Morisi, Giovanbattista Venditti, and Gonzalo Canale are all injured, but as with England, the time for the young guns is now.
Then there are the halfbacks, positions that have never truly been filled since the days of Alessandro Troncon and Diego Dominguez. At last, in Edoardo Gori and Tommaso Allan, Italy have players who look to have the confidence and talent to compete at the highest level, and more importantly Brunel is prepared to back them.
Despite this promise, the squad remains the weakest of the six on paper. The forwards will always be expected to compete and they may turn over Scotland at home, but the inexperienced backs will inevitably make mistakes along the way, though one hopes they will also find their way to the try line on occasion. Expect Italy to come in the bottom two of the ladder, but give hope that their days of pedestrian rugby are at last nearing an end.
HEAD COACH – Jacques Brunel
The oldest of the Six Nations coaches enters his third championship as he approaches his first World Cup in charge of his adopted country. The Frenchman has taken a fairly pragmatic approach thus far but with his hand somewhat forced it appears he will throw caution to the wind and opt for youth out wide this time around. It’s a move unlikely to be rewarded with immediate victory, and in all probability won’t be appreciated until Brunel himself has left his post.
CAPTAIN – Sergio Parisse
Entering his 7th season as captain and 12th in international rugby, the Stade Francais skipper remains one of the best at his position in the world. In terms of skill and athleticism he is as good as it gets, and he is totally devoted to his country’s cause. He marked his 100th cap in November and with no heir apparent in sight he could become the world’s most capped player before his time is up.
KEY PLAYER – Quintin Geldenhuys
The Italian scrum has rarely been overwhelmed in recent times, and those occasions have one thing in common – the absence of the giant South African in the no4 jersey. He isn’t particularly graceful, but he is an intelligent player and when locked into position in the Azzurri engine room he is nigh on immovable. With no alternative of comparable size or strength, Jacques Brunel will be desperate to keep him ticking through to the World Cup.
ONE TO WATCH – Mirco Bergamasco
When the younger Bergamasco went down with a serious knee injury against Australia in 2012, and then failed to secure a new contract with Racing the following year, it looked as though his international days had come to a close. He has defied the odds, however, and has revived his career at his home club of Rovigo in the Italian domestic championship. He still has his work cut out for him to earn a spot above his faster compatriots, but he remains an accurate goal kicker of vast experience, attributes not common within the squad.
FUTURE STAR – Angelo Esposito
It was always a matter of when, not if, Esposito would don the blue jersey. John Kirwan had him training with the senior side at 18, he captained the u20 side this past year, and after three Heineken Cup starts he looks likely to win his first cap shortly. With size, speed, and charisma, he has all the makings of being the next big thing in Italian rugby.
