England Squad for Italy

bathmad wrote:
On that subject, is there anybody that Croft can tackle?!?!?!

Oh yeh? Then how come New Zealand were no 1 seeds at the last one?

WAS being tongue in cheek there, you know.

Can't quite understand why people are shouting for Parling instead of Palmer, we've got loads of lineout options available, but Palmer's work rate is a cut above. In a defensive display last week he was the 2nd highest tackler behind Barritt when you'd expect it to be a back rower.

formerly known as Sam wrote:
As if I'd miss the opportunity to bash on the worst English manager though, Robinson's tenure was a disaster and set the England team back years.

Peter Seabiscuit Wheeler wrote:

formerly known as Sam wrote:
As if I'd miss the opportunity to bash on the worst English manager though, Robinson's tenure was a disaster and set the England team back years.

Judging solely on his first game in charge, and lack of desire to change things up at all for this one, Lancaster seems to be following a lot of Robinsons template...just didnt start with half a team of world class stars.
When we start praising our wingers solely for the number of tackles they made alarm bells start ringing.

Hopefuly the side will be in a better position to show more endevour in this game. If the pack starts getting good ball but still noone takes it forward then Ill really start worrying.

Adam wrote:That Palmer stat was quoted in the Brat Barritt article on the BBC sport website.

Haven't seen the overall stats, but would be interesting if anyone has a link...

hawalsh wrote:In commenting on Dowson's performance a lot of posters are highlighting his lack of carrying presence, which is understandable as that is what you normally expect from an 8, but I don't think that was why Lancaster selected him. With Wood injured the backrow options looked light in breakdown ability, which has been a consistent problem area in recent years. Dowson isn't a big carrier, but he is a nuisance at the breakdown..

formerly known as Sam wrote:

Oh yeh? Then how come New Zealand were no 1 seeds at the last one?

Because they were the number 1 team in the IRB rankings?.

B91212 wrote:

hawalsh wrote:In commenting on Dowson's performance a lot of posters are highlighting his lack of carrying presence, which is understandable as that is what you normally expect from an 8, but I don't think that was why Lancaster selected him. With Wood injured the backrow options looked light in breakdown ability, which has been a consistent problem area in recent years. Dowson isn't a big carrier, but he is a nuisance at the breakdown..

I agree. Once Wood was out England needed their 8 in the Scotland game to seriously contribute at the breakdown to try and be competitive in an area of Scottish strength, remembering that Dowson is actually a 6 who can play 8 to a decent standard. I also would have started Morgan at 8 against Italy with Dowson moving to 6 and Croft dropping to the bench - I think continuaty of selection could have been achieved by keeping the same 22 but swapping players between the starting 15 and the bench (would have maybe started Parling as well).

Just think by the next 6N's it could all have changed again and we could see:

6. Haskell
7. Rees
8. Narroway

What a blast from the past that would be!

the Telegraph wrote:Italian icon: captain Sergio Parisse will fancy his team's chances against England.

Sergio Parisse has all the attributes of a star but none of the excesses, except where it matters, out on the field.

He has got the skills, the looks, the former beauty queen wife, the Hello magazine lifestyle in Paris, yet as he sat in the Olympic Stadium in Rome on Friday, it was the simplicity of his joy at playing in such a venue for the first time that shone through.

If you looked at dreamy-eyed shots of his wedding two years ago to former Miss France and Europe, Alexandra Rosenfeld, or rippling-muscle stills of his naked torso for the annual Stade Francais calendar, you might imagine this was a man in love with himself and his calling.

Not so. The Italy captain has the trappings of fame but has not been contaminated by it.

He will lead out his side against England on Saturday evening for the first-ever Six Nations match at the Stadio Olimpico, acclaimed not as a celebrity but as a down-to-earth, fine rugby player, a blend of Zinzan Brooke and Lawrence Dallaglio, tough as well as talented.

He will captain Italy for the 37th time, equalling the record of two predecessors, Massimo Giovanelli and Marco Bortolami.

“It’s been a huge honour,” Parisse said. “For sure, this will be a historic result if we can beat England, but too many people think that just because we are here in this stadium that we will get the win. Rugby is not like that. But we want this result, for ourselves but also to give back something to our supporters.”

If there is pressure to deliver on such a big occasion, it did not show as Parisse wisecracked with a

long-standing ally in the trenches, Leicester prop Martin Castrogiovanni. Much as it is a serious business, it is also still fun. Parisse has never lost touch with his roots, never got beyond himself.

“Sergio has always been humble,” says the man who gave him his first cap [in 2002] as an 18 year-old against New Zealand in Hamilton, former All Blacks player and Italy coach John Kirwan. “I met him with his father before we picked him. Getting a sense of family can be important. They are very close, very dedicated to each other and to rugby.

"That’s one of the things that struck me about Sergio, his desire to be the best even then. He had a real project in his mind. Back then, too, you could see the leadership qualities in him. He wasn’t loud but he had presence.”

He had skills, too. His father had been a wing for L’Aquila, that famous medieval rugby town about an hour from Rome (one still struggling to recover from the earthquake three years ago), and had won a championship title with them in 1967. Sergio obviously inherited his father’s deft handling abilities, speed and a touch of audacity.

“Young Sergio had all the talent in the world but, crucially, he had the nerve to use it too,” Kirwan said. “He never plays within himself, never gives in to fear. He was throwing those behind-the-back passes even as a kid. Skill allied to confidence, it’s a pretty potent combination.”

It did not take long for that talent to be noticed. Parisse, born in Argentina where his parents had been posted with Alitalia, returned to Italy to play for Treviso before the high rollers of Stade Francais signed him in 2005.

Parisse, 28, has been a constant in the Italy side, injury and an eight-week ban for gouging All Black lock Isaac Ross apart.

That indiscretion was against the grain, for Parisse is not known as a dirty player. Far from it. He was made captain in the wake of the 2007 World Cup, replacing Bortolami. If it is an honour to lead your country, it is not without its strain.

“You’ve got to be a special type to captain Italy because you are invariably dealing with the crisis of defeat,” Kirwan said. “You have to help keep morale high and team spirit intact. Sergio, like many before him, does all that.”

He was doing all that again on Friday, directing operations from the base of the scrum as Italy went through their paces in unfamiliar conditions of sleet and snow flurries. Later he was to answer questions in different languages, translating from Italian to English without missing a beat. Parisse is one of those rare types, fluent on and off the field, a master of all that he surveys.

Cowshot wrote:

Just think by the next 6N's it could all have changed again and we could see:

6. Haskell
7. Rees
8. Narroway

What a blast from the past that would be!

Nooooo!

We've made the (long overdue) break with the past. Let's see how the Italy game goes. It's going to be tougher in the tight (Castro...), tougher in the loose (Parisse...), and the backs can't be less dangerous than the Scots were last week, and won't drop the ball as much. If we don't improve, and quite a lot, we will lose. I'm just fascinated to see if we can improve enough.

Chuckle. It's just interesting watching a bunch of lads this inexperienced trying to get it together at this level.

miteyironpaw wrote:

Cowshot wrote:

Just think by the next 6N's it could all have changed again and we could see:

6. Haskell
7. Rees
8. Narroway

What a blast from the past that would be!

Nooooo!

We've made the (long overdue) break with the past. Let's see how the Italy game goes. It's going to be tougher in the tight (Castro...), tougher in the loose (Parisse...), and the backs can't be less dangerous than the Scots were last week, and won't drop the ball as much. If we don't improve, and quite a lot, we will lose. I'm just fascinated to see if we can improve enough.

Chuckle. It's just interesting watching a bunch of lads this inexperienced trying to get it together at this level.

Stop with the mock modesty I'm tired of it. Italy are not even in the top 10. We should and will wipe the pitch with them. We are a wealthy first tier nation with a tournament pedigree and Italy have never defeated us. If you think just because we bring in a caretaker coach and bring in a few youngsters that we are likely to lose to Italy then I see you are a detractor and a coward. This is possibly an England side with the most potential since we fielded the best team in the history of the game in 2003, if not more potential.

eirebilly wrote:Doesnt seem to be too much interest in the rugby today...

eirebilly wrote:Doesnt seem to be too much interest in the rugby today...

I see you are a detractor and a coward