England one of Italy’s remaining rugby targets ahead of crunch clash
Italian progress among the top tier rugby nations has been slow but they have had past Six Nations success over France, Ireland, Scotland and Wales, plus beaten South Africa in Florence in 2016 and the Wallabies in the same stadium last November for another memorable first.
On Sunday they face a wounded England at Twickenham, hoping for another breakthrough after running Grand Slam champions France close in last week's Six Nations fixture while England were beaten at home by Scotland.
Italy were beaten 29-24 by France in Rome while the Scots won 29-23 in England coach Steve Borthwick’s first game in charge after taking over from Eddie Jones.
Sunday’s clash is the 30th meeting between England and Italy. All previous 29 have been won by the English, 23 of them in the Six Nations.
The first official clash dates back to the 1991 World Cup, with England winning 36-6.
Italy have got close to an upset, narrowly losing 23-19 in 2008, and almost pulled off an unlikely away success in 2013 when England clung on to their Grand Slam hopes by winning 18-11 at Twickenham.
In 2017, Italy coach Conor O’Shea sent his side out to try and stem England’s possession by not committing to the breakdown, meaning that no ruck was formed and, as a result, no offside line was in play.
It allowed Italy to play beyond the tackle line, catching the English unawares in a controversial ploy that was innovative as well as being outrageous.
England coach Jones said the match "wasn't rugby" and described it as "a joke" although his side still won 36-15.
Last week’s narrow loss to France has been a boost for Italy, coach Kieran Crowley said.
"We gained confidence from it by pushing them close and the other thing we got from it was we weren't accurate enough. Quite often in the past the Italians have accepted the fact that they get beat by these top teams, but the good thing on Sunday was that wasn't there.
"There was a different feeling about it and that's a real growth thing for me."
But the former All Black does not expect England to be anything other than a fierce and formidable opponent on Sunday.
"I think they will be a lot more direct and unified," said Crowley after making two changes to his side.
