Rugby world shaken: Ireland and Italy win
"The game lived up to its reputation as the battle between the Six Nations' two worst sides from the opening whistle." A somewhat ungenerous statement, that, by BBC Sport about an encounter that produced a memorable result: Italy 20-14 Scotland. Any win by Italy at this level is to be welcomed as it gives a great boost to the game in southern Europe. Italian rugby must struggle for survival and establish a tradition in a land where soccer is king. Italia 30-Galles 22 was the heading of the post we wrote here on 16 February last year. That result had marked Italy's second Six Nations rugby win ever. Now it's three. Bravissimo!
On the rugby Richter scale, the Italian win over Scotland registers an impressive 7.2, but Ireland's 19-13 victory over England defies measurement. Quite simply, instruments for calibrating this kind of impact have not been devised by science yet. The headline "Ireland beat World Champions" puts the result in context. This is an achievement of global significance, and the fact that the lads in green won at Twickenham is the icing on the cake. The Ireland-Italy clash in Dublin on Saturday, 20 March should be mighty craic, as they say in Irish quarters.
