Italy vs England preview: What time does it start, what channel is it on, where can I watch it?
A look ahead to the Six Nations fixture at the Stadio Olimpico
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Your support makes all the difference.The Italians are looking to bounce back from their defeat to the French and conquer a team they have never beaten in England.
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It’s a big game for…
George Ford. Ford has been struggling for form back in the blue of Bath and will be hoping to show off some of his extraordinary talents behind the powerful and speedy pack Eddie Jones is constructing. With the return to fitness of Sam Hill, Ford has to perform well in order to keep his shirt out of the hands of Owen Farrell.
Teams...
Italy: L McLean (Treviso); L Sarto (Zebre), M Campagnaro (Exeter), G Garcia (Zebre), M Bellini (Padova); C Canna (Zebre), E Gori (Treviso); A Lovotti (Zebre), O Gega (Treviso), L Cittadini (Wasps), G Biagi (Zebre), M Fuser (Treviso), F Minto (Treviso), A Zanni (Treviso), S Parisse (Stade Francais, capt).
Replacements: D Giazzon (Treviso), M Zanusso (Treviso), M Castrogiovanni (Racing 92), V Bernabo (Zebre), A Steyn (Treviso), G Palazzani (Zebre), E Padovani (Zebre), A Pratichetti (Treviso).
England: M Brown (Harlequins); A Watson (Bath), J Joseph (Bath), O Farrell (Saracens), J Nowell (Exeter); G Ford (Bath), B Youngs (Leicester); M Vunipola (Saracens), D Hartley (Northampton, capt), D Cole (Leicester), C Lawes (Northampton), G Kruis (Saracens), C Robshaw (Harlequins), J Haskell (Wasps), B Vunipola (Saracens).
Replacements: J George (Saracens), J Marler (Harlequins), P Hill (Northampton), J Launchbury (Wasps), M Itoje (Saracens), J Clifford (Harlequins), D Care (Harlequins), A Goode (Saracens).
Referee: Glen Jackson (New Zealand).
Assistant referees: Jerome Garces (France) and Ben O'Keefe (New Zealand).
Captain Comparison
Name Sergio Parisse Dylan Hartley
Position Number 8 Hooker
Club Stade Français Northampton Saints
Caps (As captain) 115 (62) 67 (2)
Points scored 73 5
Best stat…
266: Italy have scored just 266 points against England in the 21 matches they have played, losing all of them. A solitary draw against an England XV side in 1986 gives the Italians some measure against the English. 25 tries, 17 conversions, 4 drop goals and 32 penalties have been conceded by the full England side.
Up and coming...
Jack Clifford. The Harlequins utility back row player is the next in a long line of Harlequins academy who have been promoted to the full squad following some outstanding performances. A former Ealing Trailfinders player, he played two legs of the 2014 Sevens World Series (Japan and Hong Kong.) His versatility has seen him be capped 31 times for the Quins since 2012 and score five tries. There is hope that he will become the openside England have desperately needed.
Past three-meetings…
England 47 (B Vunipola, Joseph (2), B Youngs, Cipriani, Easter) – Italy 17 (Parisse, Morisi (2)) February 2015 Six Nations
Italy 11 (Sarto) – England 52 (Brown (2), Farrell, Nowell, Vunipola, Tuilagi, Robshaw) March 2014 Six Nations
England 18 – Italy 11 (McLean) March 2013 Six Nations
Form guide…
Italy: LWLWLL
England: WWLLWW
TV...
Live on ITV at 1pm on Sunday 14 February. Highlights on BBC2 at 7pm.
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