Berbizier lauds form of Italian veterans

AFTER Italy’s double in the Six Nations Championship, a country where rugby is definitely a minor sport is looking forward to Saturday’s match against Ireland with unprecedented enthusiasm.

“We had just three victories in seven years,” says Andrea Buongiovanni, rugby writer for the Gazzetta dello Sport. “With two wins in a row we can now, finally, talk about it genuinely as being a tournament of Six Nations.”

It is a shock to see Italy within two points of France and Ireland with one game to play, but not a complete surprise. Their French coach, Pierre Berbizier, believes that the improvement over the past two years comes from the older players providing a platform for new emerging talent.