Author: 22metri

The first time. The first time can’t be forgotten, and nobody in Florence and in Italy will forget this first win against AustraliaThe dramatic end of the game saw the Wallabies come one point short of an undeserved win. Italy controlled the game for three quarters of the match and wasted a lot of points to allow Australia to come back at them with a late resurgence. Italy came close to drawing the Wallabies almost ten years ago at the same venue. In that case a kick after the hooter by Luciano Orquera denied the wild boars a deserved result.…

A historic win for the Italian team in the first Rainbow Cup final. In Kieran Crowley’s last game before leaving Treviso and becoming Italy’s coach, the biancoverdi stunned the South African champions in a comprehensive way. Treviso wasn’t able to win a single match in the Celtic Cup regular season, but was the dominant force in the Norther Hemisphere group of the Rainbow Cup and went on to dominate the final played on home soil in front of a COVID capacity crowd. With the South African teams due to join the celts in the United Rugby Championship from September, the unexpected 35-8 demolition of the…

The Melbourne Rebels reach the finals with a last minute try. The equation was pretty simple for the Melbourne Rebels,  win by four points and go to the finals.  Any other result, and go to mad Monday. Playing against a strong wind in the first half, the winless Force showed from the very beginning they weren’t keen to make any gifts to their bitter rivals. From the kick-off the boys from the West put pressure on the Rebels, but it was a 22-0 point turnaround either side of the interval that put the match in the balance until the last seconds. The eventual…

The Melbourne Rebels put on a first-half masterclass to trounce the Brumbies 30-12 in Sydney. The Rebels handled the treacherous conditions, contrasting strong front-foot ball from the pack, and precision kicking from the back, with sloppy handling and indecision from the Brumbies. The Rebel’s first half was impressive, putting 27 points on the Brumbies, the highest half time score for the Melbourne outfit away from home. They outplayed the ladder leading Brumbies in almost every aspect, scoring four tries and conceding only one. The decision to play Deegan flyhalf and To’omua inside centre and leave Meaks on the bench repaid Wessels. The…

The Rugby Masters rally together to promote mental health and wellbeing. Australian Rugby is going through some tough times, From coronavirus to boardroom upheaval, we’re in desperate need of some good news.  Thankfully, the heroes of yesterday that still play Rugby down in Victoria have the pleasure to report a great initiative, a step to cement the bond between players of the game played in heaven. At the end of the Dewar Shield season, the Victorian Masters stage an over 35 social championship in Melbourne.  Teams from across the country participate, with some great Rugby on display, albeit a little slower than the glory days. Given…

A first win versus the Lions, first Wesel’s win versus a South African team It was the second win in a row for the Melbourne team was an excellent defensive display versus a Lions outfit the missed the spark in their backs. To’omua, Haylett-Petty and Naisarani were the outstanding players for the home team, combining clever passing, kicking and powerful runs to keep the opponents on their toes. Kellaway provided the right breaks to set up the first half lead and the defence was superb to hold on for 20 minutes with 14 players on the field. First Half The Rebels draw…

A defensive master class from both  Italy and New Zealand result in a draw. It’s the first time that Italy didn’t lose a test match to the Kiwi masters. New Zealand, the titleholders aspiring for a three-peat, was shocked by the historical draw against the European minnows. Not even Conor O’Sheas team manage to draw the game, but they didn’t even leak any try to the All Blacks.  No downpour of trys on the scoreboard.  The floodgates certainly did not open.  The Kiwis were no force of nature out on the field today. (should I stop now?) Embed from Getty Images Unfortunately,…

A fourteen man Italy went down to South Africa 49 – 3. A red card to Lovotti ends any chance of an Italian victory, despite the close scores at the break. South Africa led the first half 17-3 after tries by Kolbe and Mbonambi. The Italians believed they were still in the match, and returned from the break in good spirits. Steyn’s beautiful linebreak put the Springboks close to the try line, but a silly attempt to stop Tebaldi five meters from the Italian line gifted a penalty to Italy.  This is where everything went wrong for Italy. I don’t think…

A greatly improved Italian team outplays Canada in Fukuoka. After a disappointing game against Namibia, Conor O’Shea revolutionised his team to face their second must-win game against Canada. The great Sergio Parisse was one of ten players subbed from the team that played Namibia.  That didn’t slow down the Italians, who found a renewed vigour for the Canadians. On the pitch, Allan and Braley orchestrated the midfield, Hayward at second receiver combined well with Campagnaro, and Minozzi was again positive at fullback. But the game was well and truly won by the forwards. Steyn had a solid game at number 8, Budd and Sisi…

Despite the bonus-point win, the wild boards were scratchy and lacked concentration in their World Cup opener After 80 minutes of non-remarkable rugby, Italy’s players bowed to the spectators more in an apologetic than in a triumphant way. They didn’t perform as the 20 odd thousand in Hanazono were hoping. Sure, they got the win, but it wasn’t exciting Rugby.  With a likely win against Canada, they still give themselves a fighting chance of making it out of Pool B.  Just one small problem; the All Black, and the Springboks. A total of ten tries, one being a penalty try, were…

The Rebels ended their season with another punishing loss, this time 59-8 as the Chiefs inflicted another humiliating loss to end another losing season. It was all or nothing for the Melbourne Rebels tonight. Earlier in Invercargill the Highlanders rolled the Waratahs to go to 36 points on the ladder, taking the virtual 8th spot away from the Rebels but this heavy loss ended their hope of an historical playoff berth. Despite a promising start of the season and an impressive roster, the Rebels closed another season with more losses than wins. The Chiefs came into this match needing a…

The home loss against the Waratahs is a crucial blow for the Melbourne team. The Rebels were forced to win their second last home game of the season, in order to keep their hopes alive.  In a gritty encounter, they weren’t able to overcome a determinate Waratahs outfit. The Waratahs can now hope for a playoff spot, that after the home loss versus the Jaguares last week, seemed impossible. The Game Both teams tested each other with high balls in the wet of AAMI Park, although when the Waratahs used their kicks to gain meters, the Rebels lacked in precision, and…

Another loss for the Melbournians against a South African team may cost them a spot in the finals. The Rebels’ game plan evolution is continuing in a dangerous way.  The team that was once set to dominate the Australian conference, and reach for the first time in his history, now looks like a distant memory. In a mediocre display of rugby, the Bulls dominated the hosts in the second half, scoring points against a leaking defence, and were never challenged in their own 22, thanks largely to an inconsistent attack. First half The game started in the best way possible for the home…

Benetton Treviso is the first Italian team to reach the play off in the Celtic League Facing a fighting Zebre team in the second derby of the season, Benetton Treviso reached for the memorable milestone in Parma and will face Munster in their first play off appearance. The Lions were followed by a large contingent of green and white faithful, eager to celebrate the historic moment, the chants “Leoni – Leoni” were as laud and fierce as the “Zebre – Zebre” from the home supporters. Although judging by the jerseys worn on the stands, the small Parma stadium was packed…

Victorian premier rugby comes back to local TV in 2019 Channel 31 comes back as broadcasting partner of the Dewar Shield, the local free to air station will show a match every week on Wednesday evening and on Saturday afternoon. The deal will offer the local team another opportunity to expand their reach in the growing Melbourne rugby union market. In the past 10 years Harlequin and Melbourne have shared the Dewar Shield honours, bar in ’12 when Moorabbin stole the scene to win their 15th title. A change of the guard is long overdue, and, judging from their pre-season Cup win, Box…

The gap between the Rebels and the South African opposition isn’t closing. A terrific defensive effort and a clinic execution in attack gave the Stormers a deserved 41-24 win in Melbourne to end their Australasian tour. The Stormers’ were without Springboks Kolisi, Etzebeth and du Toit, but could still outmuscle their opponents and outscore them five tries to three. Embed from Getty Images The Rebels could not unlock the Stormers’ defence and were often forced to kick the ball away in open play.  Genia and Cooper weren’t as usual and couldn’t spark the back line.  The Rebels pack were simply outclassed by their more physical opponents,…

Twenty-second loss in row for Italy in the Six Nations What could have been last Six Nations game for rugby great Sergio Parisse saw Italy lose in a bitter way versus France. Conversely from the previous games, the hosts had plenty of ball (65%) and territory (71%), but they were unable to convert them into points. Three times the TMO had correctly disallowed Italy a 5-pointer,  the final score 14-25 is a bitter pill to swallow for the Wild Boars. France came to Rome with revenge in their eyes after another disappointing Six Nations despite another change of Head Coach, only…

Ireland had to sweat to beat Italy in third Six Nations’ Round Against all odds, Italy and Ireland delivered a highly entertaining match which saw the visitors prevail only in second half after trailing at half time. Both teams were without their usual captains: Serio Parisse and Rory Best, Italy, unexpectedly wasn’t the team to suffer most from the absence of their stalwart. Italy was plagued, as in the previous home game, from too many penalties, especially in the second half of the match, but was excellent at the line out, defended with courage and attacked with passion, showing once again to…

Another wooden spoon on the horizon for Italy Discipline and a lack of possession costed Italy dearly the home team against an unimpressive Wales outfit. The visitors winning 26 to 15 in Rome. Warren Gatland made several changes to his starting XV after the win in Paris, where they capitalised on every French error, maybe to explore the depth of his team with the World Cup in mind. The move didn’t gave the expected results, despite a comfortable win, Wales didn’t impressed and wasn’t able to score a try in the first half of the game, despite all the possession…

After wins from the U20 and Women’s teams, Italy was comprehensively beaten at Murrayfield The final score of 33-20 does not reflect Scotland dominance in the game. Scotland was sovereign in the first 70 minutes of the game, scoring five tries to zip, before shutting down in the last 10 and conceding three late tries to Italy. Italy’s forwards defended fiercely, but they were let down by the backs. The centres weren’t able to stop the rampaging Scotts through the middle once they managed to break the line an the wings left huge space in the backs for the home team’s aerial game. Italy’s…