ROME — In an intense clash at the Stadio Olimpico, Ireland narrowly triumphed over Italy with a 22-17 victory, maintaining their position in third place in the Six Nations championship on its final day. Though Ireland harbored dreams of clinching a historic third successive title, the close win was swiftly overshadowed as England secured second place, and France emerged victorious as the new champions.
After suffering a heavy defeat against France in Dublin the previous week, Ireland briefly took the lead in the tournament standings with this fourth win out of five matches. However, attempting to impose their dominance, the team faltered against a resilient Italian side keen to make amends after conceding numerous tries to France and England. “We didn’t play at our best, there’s a tinge of disappointment,” commented Ireland’s interim coach, Simon Easterby. “Full credit to Italy; they really challenged us. We squandered possession and failed to capitalize on several opportunities, which kept the game closer than it should have been.”
Despite scoring four tries to Italy’s two and enjoying over half an hour with a numerical advantage, Ireland’s performance lacked cohesion, giving Italy hope for a potential upset. Ireland’s defense was persistently tested by Italy, but three yellow cards, one escalating to a 20-minute red, hampered the home side’s efforts.
A standout on Ireland’s side was hooker Dan Sheehan, notching his first test hat trick and setting a new record in the men’s Six Nations for a forward. Fullback Hugo Keenan also showcased his skill, but potential hat tricks of his own were thwarted, with one disallowed and another not awarded.
The match kicked off with Italy showing strong promise. Winger Monty Ioane completed a well-crafted try, orchestrated by Tommaso Menoncello and Paolo Garbisi, resulted in Tommaso Allan’s conversion and subsequent penalty. Ireland’s counter came in the form of a Keenan try set up by flyhalf Jack Crowley, who also made the conversion.
Despite losing key forwards to injury early on, Italy generated four line breaks to Ireland’s single break. However, in the 39th minute, substitute flanker Michele Lamaro, Italy’s former captain, was sin-binned for unnecessary interference, paving the way for Sheehan to score from a lineout maul. Ireland took a 12-10 lead into halftime and extended it to 17-10 after another Sheehan maul try, capitalizing on teammate Ross Vintcent’s yellow card for dangerous play, which later turned into a red.
Keenan’s follow-up try was ruled out thanks to a knock-on by captain Caelan Doris, while Sheehan completed his hat trick after a deft crossfield kick from Jamison Gibson-Park to Mack Hansen set the stage. Despite a strong performance from Crowley, starting for the first time since November, his missed conversions left points on the table, highlighted further when Italy’s Ange Capuozzo set up Stephen Varney for a try, converting from the sideline, bringing Italy within five points—a close margin not seen against Ireland for over a decade.
Although Sheehan departed to applause from the Irish supporters, who were robustly represented in the crowd, late attempts by Keenan and James Lowe for additional Ireland scores went unrecorded due to technicalities. Italy’s potential comeback was thwarted when substitute hooker Giacomo Nicotera was yellow-carded for a dangerous ruck action, cementing Italy’s 16th successive loss to Ireland.
