Italy were magnificent. France were mediocre. The result was a breathless, frantic contest in which the Azzurri capitalised on a red card for Jonathan Danty, the France inside-centre, and so nearly pulled off a historic success against Les Bleus.
The width of a post was the difference when, with the clock in the red, the fly-half Paolo Garbisi struck a penalty kick that drifted against an upright, denying Italy a remarkable victory in agonising fashion. If it had gone between the sticks, they would have had their first Six Nations win in France.
Instead of a deserved success, Italy walk away with a highly creditable draw, having avoided defeat against France for the first time in 15 matches, thus ending a seven-match losing streak in the Six Nations. But there will be disappointment after coming so close to a first win against France since 2013.
“We were very harsh with ourselves after the game against Ireland. The players, the staff,” said Gonzalo Quesada, Italy’s head coach. “Ireland were top level … [but] we have high-quality players and a willingness to improve. The players have worked hard – they were disciplined, strict and rigorous.”
The Argentinian added he would “open a bottle of champagne”, and said he had no complaints about the game’s final act, when it appeared French players attempted to illegally charge down Garbisi’s kick.
Fabien Galthié, meanwhile, said he was not angry, despite seeing his side waste a succession of first-half chances following Charles Ollivon’s early try. Things would prove rather more complicated after Danty’s dismissal. “They played really well – congratulations to the Italians,” Galthié said. “This is an experience we have to take responsibility for.”
Quesada responded to a crushing defeat by Ireland by making six changes, the most notable of which was Exeter’s Ross Vintcent lining up at No 8 for his first international start. Galthié made two changes: the 19-year-old Perpignan lock Posolo Tuilagi making his first start for France, with La Rochelle’s Paul Boudehent stepping into the back row for the injured Grégory Alldritt.
With the roof closed, smoke from the pre-match pyrotechnics hung thickly in the air as the hosts set about Italy. François Cros won a breakdown penalty before Ollivon dived over. Ramos converted the opening try after a TMO check when a potential knock-on in the buildup was ruled out, and it seemed France were on their way.
Tuilagi – son of Henry, nephew of Manu – comes from an illustrious rugby family and the 19-year-old lock made his presence felt in attack and defence. A smart offload to Matthieu Jalibert released the fly-half and created a big overlap with Gaël Fickou eventually held up short. Ramos’s penalty stretched the lead to 10-0.
Italy were not uncompetitive, though, with Vintcent a bright back-row spark, but it was France building greater continuity. Matthis Lebel spilled a bouncing ball with the try-line beckoning, Jalibert wasted a chance with an all-too-cute cross-kick, and threatened Italy’s try-line again before limping off injured before half-time.
Italy were struggling to deal with Tuilagi but performed admirably to regain ground before half-time. The lively scrum-half, Martin Page-Relo, helped the visitors to attack with purpose. After Federico Mori made a strong break down the left, the TMO spotted a high hit by Danty. He was sent to the sin-bin and Page-Relo struck a superb penalty from deep to give Quesada’s side hope – which only grew when Danty’s card was upgraded to red.
Tommaso Menoncello’s ambitious kick ahead had France back-pedalling but despite being a man down, again it mostly seemed the hosts who were more fluent. But Italy’s belief visibly grew when Garbisi’s penalty narrowed the gap to seven points going into the final quarter. Ange Capuozzo’s sniping try narrowed the gap to two after a sweeping, fluent attack – and Garbisi’s excellent conversion made it all square.
Time up. Garbisi stepped up after France’s Yoram Moefana was pinged for holding on. There was a shambolic moment after the ball slipped off the kicking tee, and the French defenders seemed to think they could charge down when Garbisi readdressed the ball. His effort struck the post and saved France from a calamitous defeat. But what drama.
“Nothing is broken,” Ollivon said of France’s unsatisfactory form. “We are greatly aware we have to do better for the people who’ve been supporting us for so long … We worked hard really hard during the week, and it didn’t pay off today. We are not broken but we have a bitter feeling tonight and we want to overcome this. We have two big games ahead.”
