In the most surprising string of events, Italian rugby won against Australia, a two time rugby World Cup holder nation.
Inspired by their fast fullback Cuppuozo, and with the help of some slick handling in the backline, this Italian team cemented themselves in history and left the Australians, gutted, awed and dismayed. What surprised many was how the Italians went out from the beginning, playing hard running rugby with their forwards but mostly playing territorially. The young playmaker of Australia, Ben Donaldson, was entrusted with the responsibility to dazzle, bring surety and see the team home but it would be a day the rookie would want to forget. In as much as key players were rested for this fixture, the Wallabies failed to be present in the game, yes the hints of a tempo being upped but they never held the reins in a match that everyone expected them to win. Ill discipline killed any momentum they tried to cook during the match as everyone saw that the selected players lacked the cohesion. Weak lineout, fundamental errors and poor defense found the Wallabies wanting.
It would be unfair to credit the result to a lackluster performance by Australia without expounding on the brilliant, almost perfect performance by the Italians. Like the Brighton miracle which left everyone wondering as to how small a gap traditional rugby playing nations have on the smaller nations, this Test match proved that Italy still has a place in the Six Nations. A crucial Padovani penalty in the 76th minute put Italy up 28-22 before the Wallabies ensured a tense finish when Neville scored with the clock in the red. The pressure fell onto debutant Donaldson to convert the try to win the game, but a miss meant Italy would create history with their first win against Australia.
Australian coach Dave Rennie would be disheartened but would need to refocus the squad towards their big match of the tour against number 1 ranked side Ireland, for next week’s test.
