Six Nations 2016: Italy vs Scotland Player Ratings

ITALY

15. David Odiete: 6.5
A generally solid display and his run for the Ghiraldini try will do his long term confidence no end of good.

14. Leonardo Sarto: 5
Offered next to nothing going forward when Italy could have done with him looking for work in the midfield.

13. Michele Campagnaro: 6.5
He is such a dangerous runner and Italy will look back on this game and realise that the centre didn’t get enough ball in the right areas of the field.

12. Gonzalo Garcia: 6.5
Extremely strong in defence but his part in Ghiraldini’s try is what he should really win plaudits for.

11. Mattia Bellini: 5
Not a good day for Italian wingers. A passenger for most of the game, he made no telling contribution in attack or defence.

10. Kelly Haimona: 5.5
Carlo Canna can rest easy knowing his place is safe come the next match. A few clever little kicks but Haimona’s distribution was not consistent enough.

9. Edoardo Gori: 6
The diminutive scrum half actually played very well but he jumped out of the line for Barclay’s try and it cost his side dearly.

1. Andrea Lovotti: 4.5
Three caps to his name and he may not get anymore. Dominated in the scrum as his personal penalty account rocketed.

2. Leonardo Ghiraldini: 6
Took his try well but he needs to take some responsibility for the decimation of the Italian front row.

3. Lorenzo Cittadini: 5.5
Did more in the loose than his fellow front rowers but he was dominated in the scrum as well.

4. Marco Fuser: 7
A shining light for Italy. His work in the loose kept the pack moving forward and he disrupted a fair amount of Scottish ball.

5. Josh Furno: 6
Was having a good game before his untimely injury.

6. Francesco Minto: 7
Part of an extremely good back row, Minto put himself about everywhere. Persistently spoiling Scottish ball.

7. Alessandro Zanni: 7.5
Zanni really is a class act. His use of the choke tackle saved Italy on more than one occasion and his running in broken field is a real weapon.

8. Sergio Parisse: 8.5
What more can be said about this man? Absolutely everywhere, handing people off for fun in attack and smashing people back in defence. Superb performance yet again.

Replacements: 6
The whole front row was changed just before the hour mark and added some solidarity but it never really stemmed the flow of Scotland’s forward domination.

SCOTLAND

15. Stuart Hogg: 8
Dangerous from everywhere on the field and his offload for Tommy Seymour’s try would have had the rugby world going delirious if it was a Southern Hemisphere player. Great game.

14. Tommy Seymour: 7.5
Seymour seems to be getting better with every game he plays. Well taken try and did his fair share in defence.

13. Mark Bennett: 6
This should have been the perfect game for Bennett to really make an impact but other than a couple of half breaks he didn’t offer enough in such an open match.

12. Duncan Taylor: 6
Big game defensively but like Bennett he was disappointing in attack in a match that should have suited his style.

11. Tim Visser: 5.5
You could tell Visser has been out a long time with injury. Very rusty and barring one half break there wasn’t much to write home about.

10. Finn Russell: 7.5
The true orchestrater of Scotland’s points tally. Ran great lines and his use of dummy runners was not always appreciated by his centres. Late yellow card in a dangerous part of the game blots his copy book slightly.

9. Greig Laidlaw: 9
Man of the Match and fully deserved. Great leadership, great kicking at goal and his passing was silky smooth. He even made a couple of big hits. Defining match in his career when Scotland so badly needed a win.

1. Alisdair Dickinson: 8
Domination of his opposite number led to multiple penalties and ultimately perfect attacking field position.

2. Ross Ford: 7
Another solid performer. Threw well and was part of the front row that over-achieved massively.

3. WP Nel: 8
Same as Dickinson. Buckled his opposite man into pieces at the scrum and did more than enough at the breakdown.

4. Richie Gray: 7
Did a lot of the dirty work around the breakdown and gave attacking ball off the lineout.

5. Jonny Gray: 6.5
Not his usual swashbuckling self in the loose and although he offered himself at the breakdown he needed to carry a bit more at pace.

6. John Barclay: 8
Barclay’s stock continues to rise again as his engine seems to get bigger and more powerful. Great line for his try as well.

7. John Hardie: 8
Edoardo Gori may be having a few nightmares about Hardie as he harried him into submission all day long. Also nabbed a five pointer.

8. Ryan Wilson: 7
Always difficult to come in last minute after an injury but Wilson acquitted himself very well. Didn’t make much of an impact with ball in hand but his defensive work allowed Barclay and Hardie to play the way they did.

Replacements: 6.5
Substitutions were made very late in the game due to the performance of the starting 15 but the scrum dominance continued and no one made a mistake that put Scotland at risk.

By Andy Daniel
(@scrum5ive)

Photo by: Patrick Khachfe / Onside Images