Italy made a comeback from a challenging first half, scoring 31 unanswered points in the second half to guarantee their bonus-point victory for the second time in a row and take the lead in Pool A of the Rugby World Cup.
After an undisciplined first half from Italy in which two of their players received yellow cards due to insubordination, Uruguay led by double digits and was hoping for a major shock.
However, they came back strongly in the second half to seal the top spot in Pool A with 10 points. Kieran Crowley’s squad still has to play against France and New Zealand, who are still the heavy favorites to progress ahead in the tournament.
Game Highlights: Recap of the Match
Italy overcame a challenging first half, scoring 31 consecutive points in the second half to dominate Uruguay 38-17 in their Rugby World Cup Pool A matchup on Wednesday. However, they didn’t exactly make things simple for themselves.
In just their two encounters, Uruguay shocked Italy before halftime to lead 17-7, as Italy winded up the first half with just 13 players.
However, Italy changed the game in the second half, regaining the field with prop Danilo Fischetti and second-row Niccolo Cannone after receiving cautions, and quickly took the lead with four successful tries.
In their 27-12 loss to France in Lille six days prior, Uruguay had given them a tough match. However, they conceded an early converted try. Lorenzo Pani, the Italian player, managed to cross the try line, and a TMO review confirmed that the winger had indeed grounded the ball.
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After Italy’s Fischetti received a yellow card for handling the ball in a ruck, the South American team gained strength, and that allowed them to level the score shortly thereafter.
They were held up beneath the posts, but Australian official Angus Gardner gave the South American team a penalty try and gave a second yellow card to Italy as Cannone was penalized for an intentional infringement at the time of the breakdown.
Then, winger Nicolas Freitas crossed for Uruguay’s second try, this time in the corner, which Felipe Etcheverry added. Just before halftime, the fly-half successfully added a drop goal to further increase his team’s lead.
Early in the second half, when Uruguay’s captain Andres Vilaseca received a sin-binning, Italy made a strong comeback, scoring four tries in the span of 15 minutes.
Before Paolo Garbisi’s last-minute penalty kick, Italy had built up a 35-17 lead due to the converted tries from captain Michele Lamaro, winger Monty Ioane, Cannone, and center Ignacio Brex.
What Lies Ahead?
If Italy wants to go ahead to the knockout stages, they must win the first of their two challenging tests against New Zealand on Friday, September 29, in Lyon. Additionally, Uruguay will play in Lyon on Wednesday, September 27 against Namibia.
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