Tops
From the first minutes of the match, the Italian XV imposed its rhythm and aggressive style of play, thus destabilizing the opposing team. With a formidable attack, they quickly gained the upper hand on the field, with two penalties rewarding the work of the forwards and an unconverted try on the visitors’ first big offensive, scored by Lyon player Monty Ioane. Their solid defense made the few Italian counterattacks futile.
This is a first for Italy since their entry into the Six Nations tournament: they only lost two small matches, for two victories and a draw against the France team. A zero record – in the literal sense of the term – historic, marked by a very successful start to Gonzalo Quesada’s mandate (he arrived after the World Cup, Editor’s note).
Also read: Six Nations: the film of the Italian victory in Wales
Flops
The Welsh opener narrowly missed during this meeting. In particular, he missed a penalty, did not go out (16th) and caused a loss of ball in his camp after a misunderstanding with his back Cam Winnett (30th), which could have provoked a second Italian try in the first period. A new penalty is missing at the start of the second half (50th), which does not come out.
Warren Gatland had chosen to move forward, after a lost quarter-final in the World Cup, with a younger group, which still has work to do to compete with the elite of world rugby. Wales lost their five matches played in this 2024 tournament, the first two by a difference of one and two points (against Scotland then England) then the following with a further difference.