RUGBY REVISITED
BRENDAN GALLAGHER TELLS HOW ITALY PLAYED THEIR WAY INTO THE TOP TIER OF EUROPEAN RUGBY
Brendan Gallagher looks at how Italy, inspired by a fly-half born in Argentina, broke down the door to join the Six Nations

DESPITE a strong tradition of rugby either side of World War II, the invitation-only Five Nations, for many years, simply wouldn’t countenance Italy’s inclusion. The IRB might have notionally been the world governing body, but the closed shop self-appointed commercial cabal of the Five Nations ran European rugby with an iron fist and ambitious u...