Giovanni Raineri, the incoming head coach of the Azzurre, has posted the names of 36 players to form an extended squad to form the basis of the eventual 6N team.
I am indebted to Mario Diani for some of the information that follows.
The Squad:
Sara Barattin (Villorba), Francesca Barro (Valsugana), Jessica Busato (Villorba), Gaia Buso (Villorba), Beatrice Capomaggi (Villorba), Giulia Cavina (CUS Milano), Mathilde Cheval (Valsugana), Alyssa D’Inca (Villorba), Giordana Duca (Valsugana), Valeria Fedrighi (Stade Toulousain), Giada Franco (Colorno), Alessandra Frangipani (Villorba), Lucia Gai (Valsugana), Elisa Giordano (Valsugana), Francesca Granzotto (Unione Rugby Capitolina), Alessia Gronda (CUS Torino), Laura Gurioli (Villorba), Isabella Locatelli (Colorno), Veronica Madia (Colorno), Alessia Margotti (Valsugana), Gaia Maris (Wasps), Aura Muzzo (Villorba), Vittoria Ostuni Minuzzi (Valsugana), Alissa Ranuccini (Colorno), Beatrice Rigoni (Valsugana), Sofia Rolfi (Colorno), Sara Seye (Calvisano), Michela Sillari (Valsugana), Francesca Sgorbini (ASM Romagnat), Emanuela Stecca (Villorba), Sofia Stefan (Valsugana), Emma Stevanin (Valsugana), Sara Tounesi (Sale Sharks), Arianna Toeschi (CUS Torino), Silvia Turani (Exeter Chiefs), Vittoria Vecchini (Valsugana)
The list includes 19 forwards and 17 backs; of them 27 took part in the 2021 RWC, while eight are debutants. Like other nations, we can detect here the over-dependence on a small number of leading clubs; twelve alone from Valsugana and nine from Villorba.
Retirements and Returns
The first unavoidable fact is the loss of valued players to retirement. They include last year’s captain, Manuela Furlan, the hooker Melissa Bettoni, who has been asked to coach the Under 20 squad’s forwards (a step that more nations might follow with profit) and the experienced winger Marisa Magatti.
But the biggest surprise is to see the name of Sara Barattin, returning. She had announced her retirement with an unparalleled hat-stand of 111 caps. Diani suspects her recall is due to the injury to Francesca Granzotto, who has worn the No 9 shirt. It does reveal a lack of depth in resources if Italy need to turn yet again to their most garlanded figure.
One more established figure is missing, this time through injury, Ilaria Arrighetti.
So Rainieri’s first task is to find players able to step up and match the qualities those four possessed.
This is the uncapped octet: Laura Gurioli (hooker), Alissa Ranuccini (back-row), Giulia Caviva (Back-row), Arianna Toeschi (scrum-half), Gaia Buso (centre), Mathilde Cheval (centre), Alessia Gronda (back-three), Sofia Rolfi (back-three).
They at least will have plenty of experience around them, led by Lucia Gai with her 86 caps.
Elisa Giordano retains the captaincy that she took on during Furlan’s injury absence.
Once again all Italy’s home matches with be played in Parma. The long-term strategy must be to build crowds to match the quality the Azzurre can put on show.
The Outlook
Unlike certain countries we could name, Italy must feel confident as they approach another Six Nations. They sit fifth in world rankings, an all-time high.
Although they have lost a much admired head coach in Andrea Di Giandomenico, his replacement, Giovanni ‘Nanni’ Raineri has a lot of experience in the world of coaching, having spent time in South Africa and New Zealand, before coming home to coach club sides. He then joined the FIR in a variety of posts.
The one gap in his CV has been acquaintance with the women’s game, which until his appointment he viewed with close interest from the outside. Rather like Rob Cain in America five years ago, he has spent his time visiting clubs far and wide to make himself known and sense the progress being made. He is aware of a growing imbalance in some aspects of the international game. In 2016 England beat them 33-24; last year it was a 74-0 romp. That is the gap his players have to close.
He has discovered a point made by Simon Middleton, when asked what advice he would give to Wayne Smith as he took on the Black Ferns. ‘Expect a lot of questions,’ he smiled.
The Azzurre are still at an early stage of adopting a professional attitude to the game, but their performance in Aotearoa gives Rainieri great hopes for a prosperous future.
With the active support of Marzio Innocenti, the FIR President, the outlook is rosy.
