The postponement of England‘s final match of the Six Nations against Italy may have deprived Eddie Jones of a shot at the title and fans a trip to Rome, for now.
But we’re not ones to dwell on when the match at Stadio Olimpico will be convened, and the prospects of a first-ever win for Italy over the English can be on the table.
It is not like they haven’t come close, however. Let’s remember the four matches where the Azzurri ran England oh-so close to defeat in the Six Nations.
2008 – Italy 19 England 23
Apart from Jonny Wilkinson becoming the first player to score 1,000 points for England, this match did not have a great deal to commend it from a Red Rose perspective.
Brian Ashton’s team was disrupted by the loss of captain Phil Vickery through illness on the morning of the match, and, although they led 20-6 at half-time through tries by Paul Sackey – following a Wilkinson chip and chase and reverse pass – and Toby Flood, they faded badly after the interval.
Despite another Wilkinson penalty, Italy, coached by Nick Mallett, regrouped and two David Bortolussi penalties and a converted late try by Simon Picone saw them narrow the gap to four points with a couple of minutes remaining. The Azzurri kept pressing until the final whistle, but England held on for a narrow win.
2010 – Italy 12 England 17
This nervy victory was England’s first away win under manager Martin Johnson, and his side had to survive an Italian fightback to secure the points despite going ahead thanks to a Mathew Tait try early in the second half.
It was the only touchdown of an otherwise turgid, but closely fought match in which England struggled to impose their will on a rugged Italian pack. It eventually came down to a kicking duel between Jonny Wilkinson and Mirco Bergamasco, in which the England fly-half had to get over a two-penalty glitch, which lost him his remarkable record of not missing a penalty in any of his England starts since 2003.
However, Wilkinson bounced back to kick three penalties and a late drop-goal, against Bergamasco’s four penalties, to see England home.
2012 – Italy 15 England 19
Italy outscored England on try count for the first time when two tries in two minutes from Giovanbattista Venditti and Tommaso Benvenuti gave them a 15-6 lead in their first Six Nations match at the Olympic Stadium.
A heavy snowfall had put the game at risk, but Italy started so well against Stuart Lancaster‘s relatively inexperienced side that they threatened to make tournament history with a first win over England.
However, a second charge-down try in consecutive Tests by fly-half Charlie Hodgson, as well as a conversion and four penalties from the boot of Owen Farrell, saw England take a second-half lead and scrape home, much to the dismay of the 60,000 crowd.
2013 England 18 Italy 11
Six Toby Flood penalties were England’s only currency in a stuttering performance in which they were not only outscored by a try to nil, but were rattled throughout by a combative Italian outfit.
Luke McLean’s second-half try following a cross kick by fly-half Luciano Orquera, who also kicked two penalties, put Italy within striking distance at
15-11 – but Flood’s late penalty face-saver gave England a buffer zone as the visitors launched a series of late attacks.
The win kept England on course for a Grand Slam, which went up in smoke in Cardiff the following weekend.
