Feek’s revenge mission

THERE will be a reunion of sorts when Ireland and Italy’s front rows lock horns on Sunday and Irish scrum coach Greg Feek expects his band of brothers to present a much improved challenge to the one the Azzurri faced in Rome eight months ago.

There was something of a baptism of fire for an all-new combination of Cian Healy, Rory Best and Six Nations debutant Mike Ross when the Irish front row engaged for the first time with Italy’s renowned trio of Salvatore Perugini, Leonardo Ghiraldini and Martin Castrogiovanni.

Ireland conceded five penalties at scrum time that sunny afternoon at the Stadio Flaminio, setting the tone for a nail-biting match which saw Ronan O’Gara rescue Irish blushes with a late drop goal for a 13-11 victory.