A minute’s silence was observed with due reverence to mark Pope Francis’ death.
While this match couldn’t equal the tensions of yesterday’s pair, it will help bring more supporters in to fill Parma’s stadium. It was worthy of bringing down the curtain on a dramatic 6N tournament.
Both sides started in top gear. How long could that last? As soon as Italy conceded possession, the Welsh played like souls possessed, with quick-fire passes and recycles; Jasmine Joyce very prominent. Only Carys Cox managed to buffet her way Dow-like past tackles on the left edge, but defences held.
For eight minutes it was all Wales, and two Italians needed treatment. A penalty to touch led to a drive and a try for Kate Williams. 0-5
Italy reacted with thrilling counters. A choice chip by Sofia Stefan was collected by Veronica Madia. She grubbed to the right corner, but Aura Muzzo couldn’t quite haul it in. An abiding Welsh weakness, line-out accuracy, reared its head again. Only a tiny nudge forward short of the line prevented a first Italian score. But the pressure told. A Lleucu George kick out of defence gave Vittoria Ostuni Minuzzi her chance. Nimble hands moved the ball on, till Stefan ran it in under the posts. Ah, that line-out! 7-5
The pendulum had swung violently. The more Italy pressed, the more vulnerable Wales became to infringements. Michela Sillari kicked an easy penalty. 10-5
Wales couldn’t find a way through, hard as Joyce and Carys Cox tried. By contrast, Stefan was quick to take taps, and sharp off-loads posed real danger.
The game remained a 5-pointer till the clock turned red. Then Wales found themselves close to the Italian line. They thundered at it till finally Gwen Pyrs forced her way over. Keira Bevan’s kick was accurate.
Half-time: 10-12
There is a long tradition of tight results in this fixture. Joyce won’t forget a 3-3 ding-dong in a hurry.
The first thrust came from Francesca Sgorbini, taking a short pass and striding towards the line; but the follow-up brought another knock-on. As Cox tried to run the ball back, it looked as though both coaches had ordered: ‘Attack, and more attack!’
A no-look reverse pass by Stefan led to a break by Muzzo, who was stopped just in time. Thrilling stuff.
Eight minutes of top-gear play ended with an Italian penalty in front. Sillari obliged. 13-12
The hosts engaged an even higher gear: flicks, scoops off the ground, through-the-legs, chips over the top; no-look passes were now a commonplace, another rolling kick by Ostuni Minuzzi exerted real pressure.
It led to another high-speed attack. A long miss pass found Francesca Granzotto, just on on the right wing, who did a Kildunne by touching down legally, as a few dozen Welsh bodies tried to force her out. She, along with Sara Mannini, represent the new generation of Italian threes to threaten the places of the regulars; Rigoni was yet to appear. Sillari’s kick was perfect. 20-12
The Azzurre thundered at the Welsh line again. Sara Cox held an arm out in their favour as Veronica Madia launched a cross-kick to Granzotto that didn’t produce. But the Welsh defence came at a cost: Georgia Evans, their most prominent forward, had to leave the field after receiving more punishment than she deserved. Twelve minutes left, and a penalty to the hosts close in.
They knew how important tries would be to gain fourth place in the table, so Stefan tapped and Silvia Turani was over. 27-12
As the replacements multiplied Ostuni Minuzzi produced a great 50:22 to deflate the Welsh again. A subtly chosen pass from Stefan to VOM was another knife in the Welsh wound. She ran an unstoppable angle to the line. 32-12, but Sillari’s first miss.
The longer the game went on (16 minutes to go), the harder Lynn’s job looked to resurrect Wales’ position. Italian passes grew even silkier. They’ll hate the comparison, but the ball-play was French.
For the Welsh the touch-line came zooming in to stop another riposte by Cox. This has happened all too often for them this season. A raid started from midfield must know how to avoid running into the stand.
The moment Cox got the Welsh into the enemy 22, an illegal entry to the breakdown handed possession back.
Things improved after a promising break by Catherine Richards. George spun round to deliver a 50:22 against the grain. They won the line-out, but – what? – another side entry to end their advance. Their fourteenth penalty. The fifteenth followed at once. Natalia John, just on, hit Desiree Spinelli, just on, head on head. The yellow was already shading into a red. But no, I was wrong. The decision was ‘yellow only’. Granzotto looked even more like Kildunne as she touched down a second time, both feet off the ground. A brilliant completion. 37-12
In the ninety seconds up to the 80-minute mark Wales conceded three more penalties. Italian pressure was relentless.
The final move, from a 5-metre line-out, was perfection. Madia ran right, then offered a no-look reverse pass to Muzzo who came storming through from inside to race over the line. This was the first time either side had topped 40 points in these encounters, and what a way to achieve it. Sillari’s kick sliced the posts in two.
Result: Italy 44 Wales 12
Player of the Match: Giordana Duca
Referee: Sara Cox (RFU)
Teams:
Italy
15 Vittoria Ostuni Minuzzi 14 Aura Muzzo 13 Michela Sillari 12 Sara Mannini 11 Alyssa D’Incà 10 Veronica Madia 9 Sofia Stefan 8 Elisa Giordano (captain) 7 Francesca Sgorbini 6 Beatrice Veronese 5 Giordana Duca 4 Sara Tounesi 3 Sara Seye 2 Vittoria Vecchini 1 Silvia Turani
16 Desiree Spinelli 17 Emanuela Stecca 18 Gaia Maris 19 Isabella Locatelli 20 Alissa Ranuccini 21 Alia Bitonci 22 Beatrice Rigoni 23 Francesca Granzotto
Wales
15 Jasmine Joyce 14 Lisa Neumann 13 Hannah Jones (captain) 12 Courtney Keight 11 Carys Cox 10 Lleucu George 9 Keira Bevan 1 Gwenllian Pyrs 2 Kelsey Jones 3 Donna Rose 4 Abbie Fleming 5 Gwen Crabb 6 Kate Williams 7 Bethan Lewis 8 Georgia Evans
16 Carys Phillips 17 Maisie Davies 18 Jenni Scoble 19 Natalia John 20 Alex Callender 21 Sian Jones 22 Hannah Bluck 23 Catherine Richards
Afterthoughts
Sean Lynn made his feelings known pre-match. The smiles and the comforting words were gone. “We must do better,” he said. They didn’t do better, once a promising opening salvo had been quelled. 34 points conceded without reply made a miserable second-half return.
Lynn has two more games (at least) in which to decide a final RWC squad. The tour Cymru will make to Australia will test them to the limit.
Every year one team has to finish last. That is the nature of the beast. What we all wish to avoid is seeing the same team appearing there repeatedly. The WRU has just announced the name of a new (overall) Director of Rugby, Dave Reddin. Presumably he will help guide Belinda Moore in redirecting the women’s sector. There are promising players coming through the pathways that have been established so belatedly. A quality telescope can spot better things on the horizon.
For the moment it’s sackcloth and ashes.
Final Table
W L Pts
England 5 0 28
France 4 1 21
Ireland 2 3 11
Italy 2 3 10
Scotland 2 3 9
Wales 0 5 1
