/”Italy Victorious with 27-21 over Ireland
Following the faceoff in the Six Nations Championship, Ireland had a multitude of regrets managing only a 21 against Italy’s 27. An array of missed opportunities were seen, some due to blunders in handling and the rest due to failure to make use of the wide, open spaces. During its dominant phase, the home team was unsuccessful in scoring enough points.
Yet, victory was within their grasp. With Katie Corrigan’s interception score and Dannah O’Brien’s exceptional penalty kick, the Irish side could have scraped a win in the last minute. However, Italy’s relentless defence was able to secure victory by producing a decisive turnover.
Ireland’s inadequate passing skills cost them the match. While fundamental technical problems such as lineouts and handling errors proved to be an obstacle, Italy’s superior performance shouldn’t be overlooked. Spearheaded by captain Sam Monaghan’s outstanding display and Aoife Wafer’s exceptional game, Irish missed numerous passes throughout the match.
While the remarkable Béibhinn Parsons broke through many tackles, the home team lacked the essential clarity and calmness at significant moments. Notably, a crucial mistake from Italy’s fullback Vittoria Ostuni Minozzi, it’s attempt at a one-handed interception of an Eve Higgins’s pass for Parsons, earned the team a yellow card. This blunder was further punished with the awardance of a penalty try following the absence of Italian cover agreed upon by referee Hollie Davidson and television match official Chris Assmus.”/
Despite their lead of seven points and an additional player, the home team found themselves constantly on the defence, largely due to the aggressive tactics of Parsons, Monaghan, Brittany Hogan, Linda Djougang, and the brilliant Wafer. The comeback of the Italian team was facilitated by preventable errors from the Irish side, allowing them to gain ground through two penalties. The succeeding action led Irish hooker Vittoria Vecchini to score as the Italians effectively pushed through the Irish line at 22.
A quick comeback from the Irish side was halted when their captain Monaghan declined a simple three-point opportunity, which was then rendered more questionable when half-back Dannah O’Brien failed to touch the middle of the field given the strong wind. Italy seized this chance and retaliated with a ten-point turnaround. Beatrice Rigoni, the Italian midfielder, managed to turn a penalty into a corner kick. While the Irish defence stood strong to the subsequent maul, the Italians, led by Sara Tounesi, drove the ball within scoring distance for second row Valeria Fedrighi to get the ball over the line. Followed by a successful conversion from Rigoni and a further penalty kicked by the midfielder after three minutes, Italy’s dominance was clear.
The Irish line practically compromised when Veronica Madia, Italy’s half-back, managed to kick the ball just a few metres shy of their scoring line. Ireland’s Lauren Delany decided to run it across her 22, but was stopped by a tackle that required medical attention. This resulted in the Irish being penalised at the ruck, which in turn allowed Rigoni to increase Italy’s lead to 15-7 by the end of the first half.
The second half showed similar struggles by the Irish, who, despite their resolve, could not convert their opportunities into points. Italy’s number eight, Ilaria Arrighetti, took a risky move and kicked to the far touchline, which fell 20 metres short and into Irish possession. However, an error led to an inevitable try, and Katie Corrigan was somehow stopped at the corner by the Italian defence.
The Irish side failed to capitalise on the space on the flanks. They were granted a reprieve when referee Davidson missed a clear forward pass, an error that might have been in their favour. However, Irish wing Parsons missed a pass just 12 metres from the Italian goal, a disappointment that denied them a potential recovery.
In the build-up to Vecchini’s second try, Alyssa D’Inca made an excellent advance, with Rigoni stepping in for the conversion. Yet, commendably, Ireland countered with resilience, earning themselves a try from hooker Neve Jones. This was expertly converted from the touchline by O’Brien, reducing the difference in score to 22-14.
Italian player Aura Muzzo’s try was disallowed by the TMO due to a forward pass at the 65 minute mark, but shortly after this setback, Italy’s right wing completed an impressive move against Ireland. The home team found a sliver of hope when Corrigan intercepted a pass during Italy’s subsequent counterattack, covering a distance of 30 metres to score a try. O’Brien successfully converted and also executed a superb penalty that reached within five meters of Italy’s line as a result of a ruck infringement.
Monaghan secured the lineout, but despite a relentless attack on Italy’s line, the away team managed to regain possession and kicked the ball into play, earning them a well-deserved win. Ireland, however, managed to end with a consolation point for their losing bonus. The scoring sequence was as follows: 7 mins – penalty try, score 7-0; 24 mins – Vecchini try, score 7-5; 32 mins – Fedrighi try, Rigoni conversion, score 7-12; 35 mins – Rigoni penalty, score 7-15; 56 mins – Vecchini try, Rigoni conversion, score 7-22; 62 mins – Jones try, O’Brien conversion, score 14-22; 68 mins – Muzzo try, score 14-27; 78 mins – Corrigan try, O’Brien conversion, score 21-27.
For Ireland, L Delany of Sale Sharks was joined by K Corrigan from Old Belvedere/Leinster, E Higgins from Railway Union/Leinster, E Breen from Blackrock College/Munster, and B Parsons from Blackrock College/Connacht. Other team players included D O’Brien from Old Belvedere/Leinster, A Reilly of Blackrock College/Connacht, L Djougang of Old Belvedere/Leinster, N Jones from Gloucester-Hartpury and C Haney from Blackrock College/Leinster. They were followed by D Wall from Blackrock College/Munster, S Monaghan (capt) from Gloucester-Hartpury, G Moore of Saracens, A Wafer from Blackrock College/Leinster, and B Hogan from Old Belvedere/Ulster.
In the course of the game, substitutions were made including N Fowley for Delaney after the 35th minute, F Tuite replaced Moore in the 54th minute, A Dalton took over from Breen and M Scuffil-McCabe replaced Reilly both in the 58th minute. Later substitutions were S McGrath for Haney at the 63rd minute, E Corri in the 66th minute, and N O’Dowd in the 76th minute, whom replaced Djougang.
The team line up for Italy included V Ostuni Minuzzi, A Muzzo, B Rigoni, E Stevanin, and A D’Inca, as well as V Madia, S Stefan, S Turani, V Vecchini, S Seye, V Fedrighi and G Duca. They were joined by S Tounesi, F Sgorbini and I Arrighetti.
Several substitutions took place on their side as well: B Veronese played in place of Sgorbini during the 11th minute, G Maris replaced Turani due to a Head Injury Assessment (HIA) in the 14th minute, I Locatelli took over from Tounesi in the 70th minute, L Gai replaced Seye and F Granzotto replaced Madia in the 74th minute, A Frangipani replaced Stefan in the 76th minute, and the final substitution featured L Gurioli for Vecchini in the 79th minute.
The match was overseen by referee H Davidson from Scotland and saw a yellow card issued to V Ostuni Minozzi of Italy in the 7th minute.