Italy v Ireland winners and losers: Dan Sheehan ‘cements Lions spot’ but Andy Farrell left with ‘food for thought’
Dan Sheehan's hat-trick helped Ireland beat Italy in round 5 of the Six Nations
Following Ireland’s 22-17 win over Italy in the final round of the Six Nations, here are our winners and losers from Rome.?
Winners?
Dan Sheehan
If he hasn’t done it already, surely he’s cemented his spot in Andy Farrell’s Lions Test side for the summer. The powerful hooker was a bright spark in a fairly average Ireland display, not just with his hat-trick. His explosive carrying and genuine pace was a big weapon in the win, and was used well to re-start some fairly stagnant attacks. Surely, surely, he will wear the number 2 jersey in Australia.
Jack Conan
Has been in great form this Championship, but this performance should give his Lions chances a major boost. Conan has found himself playing second-fiddle to Caelan Doris in his preferred number eight spot, but he might have finally found himself a spot in this starting back-row at six. He was super physical in the tight, which allowed him to consistently get over the gainline and get Ireland on the front-foot. This was also the latest in a long line of strong performances, which should get him into Farrell’s thoughts.
Retiring heroes
They might not have got the home send-off they would have liked, but Peter O’Mahony and Conor Murray got their fairytale ending today with a win in their final Test. The Munster duo have been right at the heart of this Ireland side for the best part of a decade now, if not longer, and they deserved to end on a high note like this. It was also pleasing to see them have a good impact on the game too upon their entries, which again shows just why they have been key components in this side.
Bundee Aki
He faced the axe after the France defeat, but once again he came to Ireland’s rescue from the bench. The punch and power he adds through the middle helped break down the stubborn Italian defence, which in turn saw his side put the game to bed. Again, this will serve as another reminder to Farrell of what he can bring to a side, and should also see him locked into that starting jersey this summer.
Brexoncello
Yet again proved why they are considered the best centre pairing in the world right now. As individuals, they both had stellar outings, but when they combined, they just looked in ridiculous touch throughout. Their telepathic knowledge of one another’s game, as Brex revealed to Planet Rugby last week, just means they can interplay around each other and find themselves in different spots to cause chaos.
Paolo Garbisi
This was a very mature performance from Paolo Garbisi today, which proves he has fully arrived on the Test stage now. Don’t get me wrong, he’s been one of Italy’s best players for a while now, but today he showed just why he is the man to drag Italy into a consistent competitive force at the top table. He just effortlessly guided his side around the pitch, but crucially played fast when it was on rather than just the joue joue style we’ve come to see from him. Italy are clearly growing, and he is the man to take them into the future.
Gonzalo Quesada
It’s not quite been the Six Nations Italy would have hoped for, but today showed there is still plenty for him to go on moving forward. They were much-improved defensively, which would have pleased him no end after conceding 120 points in their previous two Tests, but they also looked to play for the full 80 minutes, which is something that has alluded them to date. They should be in a much better place after this Test, despite coming out on the losing side.
France
While Ireland got the bonus-point they needed, the seven-point margin has helped France put one hand on the title. Ireland needed to put a serious score on Italy today if they stood a real chance of beating France to the title, but they just weren’t able to do that. Advantage Les Bleus.
Losers
James Lowe
His Lions’ stock rose in his absence last weekend, but they have taken a huge tumble this weekend. Speed has never really been James Lowe’s strength, but today he just found himself wanting against Ange Cappuozzo and that will really worry Farrell. The Wallabies backline has proved multiple times this past year they have speed to burn, and today showed how easily he can be exposed in the summer.
Jack Crowley
This was his chance to nail down the starting 10 jersey, but he didn’t take it, unfortunately. He was fine around the pitch, but fine won’t cut it in a battle this close and this intense, and elsewhere his kicking off the tee wasn’t quite where it needed to be. Crowley will have better days in the shirt, if given another start.
Carded trio
Italy were probably the better side up until the 39th minute, but the cards to Michelle Lamaro, Ross Vintcent and?Giacomo Nicotera cost them massively. Ireland took the most of the numerical advantage, with the majority of their tries coming when a man up, and that ultimately proved the difference between them in the end. What’s worse is they were all pretty avoidable too.
Italian injuries
The Azzurri picked up some heavy losses early into the day, which again dented their momentum. Dino Lamb, Seb Negri and?Lorenzo Cannone have proved to be serious operators in the tight for their side, and their extra beef was having a good effect early on, but when they went off Ireland gained the ascendancy. We all hope they aren’t too serious either.
Andy Farrell
Pre-Six Nations, the Lions were largely touted as the Irish and British Lions, with Ireland set to take most of the spots, but the end of their Championship has probably given Farrell some food for thought. There should now be plenty of spots opening themselves up to other players across the nations, which you might have felt were destined for an Irish player, and some might have even played themselves out of Farrell’s thoughts.
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