6 Nations
WATCH: Wales beat Italy in Rome – Highlights & Report.
Wales equal record run of victories after overcoming Italy at the Stadio Olimpico
Photo by ANDREAS SOLARO/AFP/Getty Images
A Wales side that included 10 changes from round one secured a record-equalling 11th consecutive win with an uninspiring victory over Italy.
An almost unrecognisable team from a week ago relied heavily on the kicking prowess of Dan Biggar, who racked up four penalties and a conversion as the Welsh stumbled to a 26-15 victory.
Back row pair Thomas Young and Aaron Wainwright, scrum-half Aled Davies and winger Jonah Holmes were all making Six Nations debuts, while centre Jonathan Davies captained his country for the first time.
Wales will have the opportunity to break the record that has stood for over 100 years when they play England in Cardiff.
Josh Adams and Owen Watkin scored second-half tries to add to Biggar’s four penalties before the interval.
Italy stayed in touch thanks to a Braam Steyn try and a Tommaso Allan penalty.
Edoardo Padovani then added to his try against Scotland by crossing the whitewash with just over five minutes to go, in what proved to be a mere consolation.
The Italians set a record of their own with defeat; they have now lost the most matches in the tournament’s history. (19).
There were very few convincing performances from the players brought in by Wales head coach Warren Gatland, in a game he described as ‘a lesson in how to win ugly’.
That being said, Wasps flanker Young was industrious if not glamourous on his Six Nations debut and scrum-half Davies showed glimpses of the threat he can be around the breakdown.
It was one of the players who survived Gatland’s rotation of the squad who was most impressive though. Josh Navidi put in a man of the match performance from number eight after he was switched from flanker for this game.
How the action unfolded
With less than a minute on the clock, Italy gifted the inexperienced Welsh side a confidence booster, conceding a penalty which Biggar slotted with ease.
This set the tone for the half, with Wales enjoying the majority of the ball, and Biggar punishing the Italian ill-discipline from the tee.
Despite this, it was Italy who recorded the first try of the game just before half-time when Steyn powered over the line from five metres out.
The try stemmed from a miscued kick from Adams, and a bold call from Italy captain Sergio Parisse to kick for the corner instead of the posts.
After the conversion, Wales led by just five points at the break, which will have infuriated Gatland after his side had been so in control.
Wales started the second half in the same fashion as they finished the first, conceding three more points after more poor discipline.
With Wales’ young side struggling for answers to Italy’s dogged defence, Gatland sent on squad skipper Alun Wyn Jones to steady the ship.
Biggar was unable to replicate his first half kicking form as he missed two penalties in a matter of minutes as Wales looked as lethargic as ever in attack.
It wasn’t until a burst from number nine Davies and fullback Liam Williams slipping a couple of tackles that Wales showed any signs of penetration. Williams broke into the 22 and offloaded to Adams who touched down for only his second ever international try.
Wales continued to improve as more experience was introduced from the bench in Gareth Anscombe, with Davies seeing a try ruled out for a knock-on after a clever chip. Anscombe then repeated the feat with a chip of his own, which Watkins dived on to score his first try for Wales.
Italy fly-half Allan then beat the Welsh defence to set up Padovani in the corner as the home side refused to roll over. Just moments before Wales had another try disallowed after a forward pass; yet another occasion where they failed to be as clinical as last week.
The deficit proved too much for Italy to recover however, and Wales finished the game as 26-15 winners.
It was far from a vintage performance from Wales, who will point to the number of changes made by Gatland as a reason for the drop in quality from round one.
If Wales want to break the record set in 1910 by beating England in two weeks’ time, they will require a much sharper display than they produced in Rome.
As for Italy, they can hold their heads high after a battling performance and some good rugby. However, they will need to improve on their discipline for two weeks, as Ireland will not be as forgiving as Wales indivertibly were today.
Munster Rugby and the IRFU are pleased to confirm contract extensions for Conor Murray and Jack Daly with Brian Gleeson to be promoted from the Academy to the senior squad next season.
Murray and Daly have signed one-year extensions with Gleeson moving up to the senior squad on a two-year deal.
Gleeson is one of five Academy players moving up to the senior squad next year with Tony Butler, Ethan Coughlan, Mark Donnelly and Edwin Edogbo also signing two-year deals.
Conor Murray is one of the most decorated scrum-halfs in world rugby with 116 Ireland caps and three British & Irish Lions tours to his name.
A former St Munchin’s College student, the Garryowen man won his fifth 6 Nations title with Ireland last month and earned his second league title with Munster last season.
The 34-year-old has made 185 Munster appearances and scored 34 tries for the province to date and was named on World Rugby’s Team of the Decade in 2019.
25-year-old flanker Jack Daly came up through the ranks at Castleisland RFC and made his Munster debut against Zebre in 2020.
Daly joined the Academy in 2018, moved up to the senior squad in 2021 and plays his AIL rugby with Garryowen. A former Ireland U20 international, he made his Champions Cup debut against Toulouse in the quarter-final at the Aviva Stadium in 2022.
Try-scoring number 8 Brian Gleeson leads the charge for the Ireland Under-20s against France ©INPHO/Evan Treacy
20-year-old Gleeson moves up to the senior squad after just one year in the Academy that has seen him score one try in nine senior appearances.
Currently out of action with an ankle injury, he had already made three Champions Cup appearances before turning 20.
The powerful back-row forward was a Grand Slam winner with the Ireland U20s last year. plays his AIL rugby with Garryowen and came up through the ranks at Thurles RFC and Rockwell College.
Images & Content from Irish Rugby & Images © Inpho Photography
Head Coach Andy Farrell has named his Ireland Match Day Squad for Saturday’s Guinness Men’s Six Nations clash against Scotland at Aviva Stadium (Kick-off 4.45pm).
Ireland – currently sitting top of the Six Nations table heading into Super Saturday – can clinch back-to-back Championship titles with victory over Scotland in Dublin.
Farrell has named an unchanged starting XV for the Round 5 clash, as Hugo Keenan, Calvin Nash and James Lowe continue in the Ireland back three. Robbie Henshaw and Bundee Aki are once again selected in midfield, with Jack Crowley and Jamison Gibson-Park the starting half-backs.
Andrew Porter, Dan Sheehan and Tadhg Furlong pack down in the front row, with Joe McCarthy partnering Tadhg Beirne – who is set to win his 50th Test cap for Ireland – in the engine room.
Captain Peter O’Mahony is at blindside flanker, Josh van der Flier is at openside and Caelan Doris completes the starting XV at number eight.
The Ireland Coaching Team have opted for a 5-3 split on the bench, with Rónan Kelleher, Cian Healy, Finlay Bealham, Ryan Baird and Jack Conan providing the reinforcements up front, and Conor Murray, Harry Byrne and the fit-again Garry Ringrose the backline options.
Saturday’s match is live on Virgin Media One and ITV, with live radio coverage available on RTE Radio 1.
Ireland Team & Replacements (v Scotland, Guinness Men’s Six Nations, Saturday, March 16, 4.45pm)
15. Hugo Keenan (UCD/Leinster)(39)
14. Calvin Nash (Young Munster/Munster)(5)
13. Robbie Henshaw (Buccaneers/Leinster)(71)
12. Bundee Aki (Galwegians/Connacht)(55)
11. James Lowe (Leinster)(30)
10. Jack Crowley (Cork Constitution/Munster)(13)
9. Jamison Gibson-Park (Leinster)(34)
1. Andrew Porter (UCD/Leinster)(63)
2. Dan Sheehan (Lansdowne/Leinster)(25)
3. Tadhg Furlong (Clontarf/Leinster)(75)
4. Joe McCarthy (Dublin University/Leinster)(9)
5. Tadhg Beirne (Lansdowne/Munster)(49)
6. Peter O’Mahony (Cork Constitution/Munster)(captain)(104)
7. Josh van der Flier (UCD/Leinster)(61)
8. Caelan Doris (St Mary’s College/Leinster)(40)
Replacements:
16. Rónan Kelleher (Lansdowne/Leinster)(30)
17. Cian Healy (Clontarf/Leinster)(128)
18. Finlay Bealham (Buccaneers/Connacht)(39)
19. Ryan Baird (Dublin University/Leinster)(19)
20. Jack Conan (Old Belvedere/Leinster)(45)
21. Conor Murray (Garryowen/Munster)(115)
22. Harry Byrne (UCD/Leinster)(3)
23. Garry Ringrose (UCD/Leinster)(57).
Images & Content from Irish Rugby & Images © Inpho Photography
Head Coach Andy Farrell has named his Ireland Match Day Squad for Saturday’s Guinness Men’s Six Nations clash against England at Twickenham (Kick-off 4.45pm).
Peter O’Mahony captains Ireland for the Round 4 visit to London, with Hugo Keenan returning to the starting XV after recovering from injury.
Keenan joins Calvin Nash and James Lowe in the Ireland back three, with Bundee Aki and Robbie Henshaw continuing their midfield partnership.
Jack Crowley and Jamison Gibson-Park are retained as the half-back pairing.
In the pack, Andrew Porter, Dan Sheehan and Tadhg Furlong are in the front row, with Joe McCarthy and Tadhg Beirne named in the engine room. Captain O’Mahony is at blindside flanker, Josh van der Flier is at openside and Caelan Doris completes the starting XV at number eight.
The Ireland Coaching Team have selected a 6-2 split on the bench, as Ronan Kelleher, Cian Healy, Finlay Bealham, Iain Henderson, Ryan Baird and Jack Conan provide the reinforcements in the pack.
Backs Conor Murray and Ciaran Frawley complete Ireland’s Match Day 23 to face England.
Saturday’s match is live on RTÉ2 and ITV.
Ireland:
15. Hugo Keenan (UCD/Leinster)(38)
14. Calvin Nash (Young Munster/Munster)(4)
13. Robbie Henshaw (Buccaneers/Leinster)(70)
12. Bundee Aki (Galwegians/Connacht)(54)
11. James Lowe (Leinster)(29)
10. Jack Crowley (Cork Constitution/Munster)(12)
9. Jamison Gibson-Park (Leinster)(33)
1. Andrew Porter (UCD/Leinster)(62)
2. Dan Sheehan (Lansdowne/Leinster)(24)
3. Tadhg Furlong (Clontarf/Leinster)(74)
4. Joe McCarthy (Dublin University/Leinster)(8)
5. Tadhg Beirne (Lansdowne/Munster)(48)
6. Peter O’Mahony (Cork Constitution/Munster)(captain)(103)
7. Josh van der Flier (UCD/Leinster)(60)
8. Caelan Doris (St Mary’s College/Leinster)(39)
Replacements:
16. Ronan Kelleher (Lansdowne/Leinster)(29)
17. Cian Healy (Clontarf/Leinster)(127)
18. Finlay Bealham (Buccaneers/Connacht)(38)
19. Iain Henderson (Academy/Ulster)(80)
20. Ryan Baird (Dublin University/Leinster)(18)
21. Jack Conan (Old Belvedere/Leinster)(44)
22. Conor Murray (Garryowen/Munster)(114)
23. Ciaran Frawley (UCD/Leinster)(3)
Images & Content from Irish Rugby & Images © Inpho Photography
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