Rugby. Italy Emerging, good test: 50-5 in Holland, the scrum dominates and Albanese creates

Italia Emergenti beat Holland 50-5 (pt 26-5, goals 8-1) in the first blue match of the summer. At the Battaglini di Rovigo the third blue selection – that of the best prospects of the Top 10 – has no problems against the Orange: the superiority of the men selected by Troncon is evident, both for organization, for individual technique, and for physicality. The South Africa tour of Italy A (on 24 in Stellenbosch challenges Namibia, on 2 July in Port Elizabeth that of the Currie Cup selection), which will involve many of the boys on the field at Battaglini, will be a more significant test, but some positive note can already be reported.

First half

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Especially as seen in the first half, when the Azzurri maintained impeccable tactical conduct. The first line of the twenty-year-olds who brought the Scudetto to Petrarca (Spanish-Di Bartolomeo-Hasa) is overflowing not only in a closed scrum, the Dutch have no idea how to stop the blue advances from the Penaltouche. Behind the scrum Albanese produces a lot of rugby: he sews the blue game with speed, constantly seeks solutions in attack (sometimes even exaggerating), “strength” kept on the ground, also kicks between the posts (he will close with a 4/6 in the transformations). The third Ruggeri, Izekor and Ghigo make kilos and mobility worth it. In addition to the usual Gesi, one who seems born to sniff out the goal, he also likes the Petrarchian center Broggin. Four goals arrive with Gesi (9th), Di Bartolomeo (from penaltouche, 19th), Izekor (31st) and with Davide Ruggeri at 36th, again from the maul on the lineout.

Second half

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Holland is very small, Gesi invents the second goal with an impromptu slalom inside the 22 that sees the orange defense absent (33-0). Troncon changes the front line – all three young Petrarchians will leave with him towards South Africa with the “A” -, also removes Albanese (who will instead be with Crowley’s Major) but apart from a couple of accidents (one maul stopped, a kick granted in the scrum) the Azzurri forwards are too superior for the game to take another turn. So Ruggeri crushes again from penaltouche (11 ‘st), and if at 18’ the winger Jordy Hop signs the only goal of the guests, before the end the hooker entered from the bench Giampietro Ribaldi breaks through twice more.