VENUE: STADE GEOFFROY-GUICHARD

CROWD: 30000

CONDITIONS: WET

REFEREE: JONATHAN KAPLAN

SCOTLAND 18 (12) v (10) 16 ITALY

SCORERS:

Pen: Chris Paterson (2nd); 3-0

Pen: Paterson (6th); 6-0

Try: Alessandro Troncon (13th); 6-5

Con: David Bortolussi (14th); 6-7

Pen: Bortolussi (18th); 6-10

Pen: Paterson (32nd); 9-10

Pen: Paterson (35th); 12-10

Pen: Paterson (47th); 15-10

Pen: Paterson (53rd); 18-10

Pen: Bortolussi (56th); 18-13

Pen: Bortolussi (62nd); 18-16

STATISTICS:

Scrums - SCO 6 feeds = 4 wins, ITA 9 feeds = 9 wins

Line-outs - SCO 22 feeds = 20 wins, ITA 18 feeds = 15 wins

Rucks/Mauls - SCO 44, ITA 55

Turnovers - SCO 6, ITA 7

Handling errors - SCO 5, ITA 2

Penalties - SCO 9, ITA 9

Free kicks - SCO 3, ITA 3

Shots at Goal - SCO (6/6), ITA (4/8)

Yellow cards - Mauro Bergamasco (8th); Nathan Hines (55th)

Red cards -

PLAYER ANALYSIS:

Best Front-ranker: Gavin Kerr (1)

Best Second-rower: Nathan Hines (4)

Best Back-rower: Allister Hogg (7)

Best Half-back: Dan Parks (10)

Best Mid-fielder: Rob Dewey (12)

Best at the Back: David Bortolussi (15)

CONCLUSION:

The result was always going to be close as the sides were very evenly matched. The wet conditions were a good leveller too. Both sides’ half-backs kicked very well and played the conditions to a tee. I think Italy really missed their skipper Marco Bortolami. The Azzuri only lost 3 line-outs, yet all 3 were crucial, as Italy was hard on attack at the time. Bortolami is mister dependable when it comes to line-outs. Another thing that I think played a large role as far as the result goes was the mental condition of the players. Italy was responsible for a lot of niggle in the game, and it seemed as if they believed that intimidation (emotion) would be enough to see the Scots off. This was while Scotland never lost their heads and remained composed throughout the Test. A final thing that did play a role was goal-kicking. Scotland took every scoring opportunity that came their way, Italy squandered a few.