The Italy rugby squad arrived in Cape Town this morning for their one-off Test against South Africa at Newlands on Saturday.
The 24-man playing squad has been selected with a view to the future, so says head coach Nick Mallett some weeks ago.
Mallett, a former Ikey, Western Province, Springbok and Springbok coach, has included four uncapped players as well as two players who have one cap each, one with only two Tests to his credit, one with three, one with four, one with six, one with seven and one with eight.
The most-capped players play their club rugby outside Italy.
They are Saracens hooker Fabio Ongaro (53), Biarritz Olympique’s lock Santiago Dellape (50) and his club mate Andrea Masi, who is a utility back.
The captain is hooker Leonardo Ghiraldini from the Cammi Calvisano club, who has 11 caps to his name.
The Italy tour squad is:
Players:
Michele Rizzo (Carrera Petrarca Padova, 1 cap) – prop, Roberto Barbieri (Benetton Treviso, 6 caps)—flanker, Pablo Canavosio (Castres Olympique, 18 caps) — scrumhalf/wing, Ignacio Rouyet (Montepaschi Viadana, uncapped) – prop, Alejandro Moreno (Leicester, 4 caps) – prop, Carlo Antonio Del Fava (Ulster, 28 caps) – lock, Santiago Dellape (Biarritz Olympique, 50 caps) – lock, Jaco Erasmus (Montepaschi Viadana, 2 caps) lock/n.8, Gonzalo Garcia (Cammi Calvisano, uncapped) – centre, Leonardo Ghiraldini (Cammi Calvisano, 11 caps) — hooker, team captain, Andrea Marcato (Benetton Treviso, 7 caps) — flyhalf/fullback, Andrea Masi (Biarritz Olympique, 40 caps) — centre/wing/flyhalf, Luke McLean (Cammi Calvisano, uncapped) — fullback/flyhalf, Carlos Nieto (Gloucester, 26 caps) – prop, Ludovico Maria Nitoglia (Cammi Calvisano, 17 caps) – wing, Fabio Ongaro (Saracens, 53 caps) – hooker, Enrico Patrizio (Carrera Petrarca Padova, 3 caps) — centre/wing, Riccardo Pavan (Overmach Cariparma, uncapped) — centre/wing, Simon Picone (Benetton Treviso, 15 caps) – scrumhalf, Matteo Pratichetti (Cammi Calvisano, 8 caps) — centre/wing, Tommaso Reato (Femi CZ Rovigo, 1 cap) – lock, Kaine Robertson (Montepaschi Viadana, 30 caps) – wing, Josh Sole (Montepaschi Viadana, 28 caps) — lock/n.8, Alessandro Zanni (Cammi Calvisano, 22 caps) – flanker.
Management:
Nick Mallett — head coach, Carlo Checchinato — team manager, Jean Philippe Cariat — assistant coach: backs, Carlo Orlandi — assistant coach: forwards, Alessandro Troncon — assistant coach, David Fonzi — video analyst, Alex Marco — fitness trainer, Gianluca Melegati — chief doctor, Roberto Pozzoni — team doctor, Yarno Celeghin – physio, Sante Lugarini – osteopath, Andrea Cimbrico — media manager, Alberto Calabrò — baggage master
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