Six Nations: Stephen Ferris previews Scotland v Italy
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Six Nations: Scotland v Italy preview
The Six Nations Championship concludes this weekend when Ireland can clinch the Grand Slam by beating wounded England in Dublin.
Ladbrokes ambassador and former Ireland international Stephen Ferris gives his thoughts on all three matches this weekend.
What an amazing weekend of rugby we witnessed in round four.
The Welsh stunned everyone by beating the Italians on their home patch. England suffered their biggest ever home defeat to France, which quite frankly could have been worse.
And Ireland continued on in the rich vein of form that they have been showcasing for the last two years. Hopefully we are all in for another treat in the last weekend of this year’s championship. It’s a super Saturday, which might end with an Ireland Grand Slam…or will it?
Scotland v Italy (Saturday, 12.30, BBC)
Many Scottish fans had the wind taken out of their sails last weekend when the Irish rocked up in Edinburgh. There was hope and expectation, but also a few doubts due to the fact Ireland had only lost twice to Scotland in the last 10 years.
Unfortunately, the match came at a heavy price for both sides. Key Scotland duo Finn Russell and Stuart Hogg have both been ruled out of this weekend’s game, and lock Richie Gray went off in the opening quarter and is also unlikely to feature. But with some guys missing, this provides opportunity for others.
Stuart Hogg and Finn Russell sustained injuries during our game with Ireland and will return to their clubs.
Richie Gray will remain with the Scotland squad to continue to be assessed by medics.
Read more 📰 https://t.co/TlUdFrKtuL pic.twitter.com/q2cPG6hp53
— Scottish Rugby (@Scotlandteam) March 13, 2023
The last time Scotland lost to Italy was in 2015. There have been a number of close encounters since then and it feels like Italy will absolutely give it a go in the early kick-off on Saturday. When you have lost all four games, it is assumed that you haven’t been that good.
But, Italy have played some of the best rugby in the Championship and are a match for anyone these days. A well coached side not afraid to throw the ball around, Italy can hurt you from anywhere on the field and Scotland will be wary of that.
The Italians will take confidence from their history against Scotland. They have won seven of their previous 23 Six Nations games, which is their best record against any of the sides in the competition. They have also scored at least three tries in three of their last five meetings, and with the way Scotland are trying to play the game this should be an entertaining match with hopefully lots of points scored. Something to keep an eye on with the betting.
Prediction:
The points handicap is 15 points for this game. With no Russell or Hogg, this seems a little generous. Scotland need to sort out their line-out which functioned at just over 60% against Ireland. With the Italians operating at around 90% for the championship, they will certainly target this area.
All odds and markets correct as of date of publication
