New front row, reshuffled backline - Italy name team to play France
Italy head coach Kieran Crowley has named his matchday 23 to face France in Lyon on Friday. Simone Ferrari (pictured right), Hame Faiva and Pietro Ceccarelli form a completely new front row after scrum struggles and injuries in the 96-17 defeat to New Zealand, while star backs Tommaso Allan, Paolo Garbisi and Ange Capuozzo all switch positions.
1 Simone Ferrari
2 Hame Faiva
3 Pietro Ceccarelli
4 Niccolo Cannone
5 Federico Ruzza
6 Sebastian Negri
7 Michele Lamaro (c)
8 Lorenzo Cannone
9 Stephen Varney
10 Tommaso Allan
11 Montanna Ioane
12 Paolo Garbisi
13 Juan Ignacio Brex
14 Pierre Bruno
15 Ange Capuozzo
Replacements:
16 Marco Manfredi
17 Federico Zani
18 Marco Riccioni
19 David Sisi
20 Manuel Zuliani
21 Alessandro Fusco
22 Luca Morisi
23 Lorenzo Pani
• Head coach Kieran Crowley has made five personnel changes and three positional switches to his starting XV from the team who lost 96-17 last game.
• Simone Ferrari, Epalahame Faiva and Pietro Ceccarelli form an all-new front row, while Niccolò Cannone returns to the second row to partner Federico Ruzza.
• Pierre Bruno starts on the right-wing for the first time at RWC 2023 after playing 33 minutes off the bench against Namibia.
• Tommaso Allan moves back to fly-half after starting at full-back last week, Paolo Garbisi returns to inside-centre after wearing the number 10 jersey against the All Blacks, and Ange Capuozzo moves to full-back after playing three of his past four tests on the right-wing.
• There are 15 survivors in this match-day 23 from their five-point loss against France in February, including 11 in the starting XV.
• Tommaso Allan has not missed a shot at goal at RWC 2023, kicking all 15 attempts. He is their only survivor from the last time they played France at a Rugby World Cup, in 2015.
• Prop Simone Ferrari will play his 50th test, as will Luca Morisi if used off the bench. Ferrari will start at loose-head for only the second time in his career. Thirty-two of his 33 career starts have been at tight-head, including against France earlier this year.
• If used off the bench, Marco Manfredi will make his Rugby World Cup debut. He has played only 32 minutes of test rugby combined since making his debut against Scotland in the 2023 Six Nations.