Rugby:Brian O'Driscoll is determined that Ireland will tomorrow summon the performance they need to postpone the Six Nations upset by Italy that he believes is inevitable. Irleand open their campaing at the Stadio Flaminio tomorrow having never lost in the fixture since Italy's entrance into the tournament in 2000.
Scotland and Wales have fallen victim to the Azzurri, who are embarking on their 12th championship, and O’Driscoll fears it will be Ireland’s turn one day.
“It’s inevitable that at some stage Italy will beat us in a Six Nations games, let’s just hope it’s not tomorrow,” he said. “They’ve definitely improved from my earliest memories. These days teams give them the same respect as they did back then, but it’s a different type of respect.
“Now there’s a realisation that, genuinely, if you don’t play properly for 80 minutes they can turn you over. In the past you felt as though you might have the upper hand in the last quarter of the game. If you were ahead of them by then you could pull away in that section of the game, but that definitely hasn’t been the case in the last couple of years.
“They’ve managed to stay with teams an awful lot longer. They’ve been hugely impressive. Looking at some of the clips from their November series, they’re not just physical but can play some rugby too. They put teams likes Australia under pressure at times.”
Ireland remain overwhelming favourites to launch their Six Nations with victory in Rome despite being robbed of 12 internationals by injury. They are still able to field a team averaging 35 caps per player with right wing Fergus McFadden the only test debutant.
Italy have selected a grizzled side packed full of veterans, among them skipper Sergio Parisse and prop Martin Castrogiovanni. And O’Driscoll knows the value of ensuring they are denied the opportunity to inspire their home support.
“The Stadio Flaminio is not as big as a lot of other international stadia, but it’s a nice place to play,” he said. “The sun shines and it’s a hard track. More often than not teams love playing in those conditions.
“It can blow a bit with a tricky wind, but it’s a great place to play with a lively atmosphere. As we discovered two years ago, if Italy start well then the crowd get behind them. There’s an element of the French there in that respect, so it’s all about trying to silence the crowd.”
With tomorrow’s protagonists due to meet in the same World Cup pool on October 2nd in what should be a shoot-out to decide who follows Australia into the quarter-finals, they will both be eager to register a moral victory.
“We just want to start the Six Nations well,” said O’Driscoll. “Maybe there will be a knock on effect to the result at the weekend, giving the upper hand to the winner going into the World Cup. But there are plenty of other things to be concerning yourself with rather than one upmanship. We want to put in the performance and get a good victory.
“The hardest part of the Six Nations is now — the two weeks in the lead up to it. Once you’re into it, it’s a lot easier. But the build-up and talking about it is the hardest part. We’re more comfortable playing than talking about it.”
