Italy women's national rugby union team
The Italy women's national rugby union team (Italian: nazionale di rugby a 15 dell'Italia) are the national women's rugby union team that represents Italy at international level. It has been administered by the Italian Rugby Federation since 1991; previously, since its inception in 1985 up to 1991, it was administered by UISP – Unione Italiana Sport Popolari (Italian Union for People's Sports), an association which promotes amateur sports at every level of the society. The team competes in the Rugby World Cup, the Rugby Europe Women's Championship and the Women's Six Nations Championship.
| Nickname(s) | Le Azzurre (The Blues) |
|---|---|
| Union | Federazione Italiana Rugby |
| Head coach | Giovanni Raineri |
| Captain | Elisa Giordano |
| Most caps | Sara Barattin (111) |
| Top scorer | Veronica Schiavon (383) |
| Top try scorer | Manuela Furlan (20) |
| World Rugby ranking | |
| Current | 7 (as of 23 October 2023) |
| First international | |
| Italy 0–0 France (Riccione, Italy; 22 June 1985) | |
| Biggest win | |
| Germany 0–52 Italy (Hamburg, Germany; 7 April 2005) | |
| Biggest defeat | |
| Italy 0–74 England (Parma, Italy; 3 April 2022) | |
| World Cup | |
| Appearances | 4 (First in 1991) |
| Best result | 9th 2017 |
| Rank | Change* | Team | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | England | 96.18 | |
| 2 | New Zealand | 90.56 | |
| 3 | France | 87.89 | |
| 4 | Canada | 86.27 | |
| 5 | Australia | 81.61 | |
| 6 | Wales | 76.67 | |
| 7 | Italy | 75.61 | |
| 8 | Scotland | 74.37 | |
| 9 | United States | 72.02 | |
| 10 | Ireland | 71.52 | |
| 11 | Japan | 69.38 | |
| 12 | Spain | 64.89 | |
| 13 | South Africa | 64.37 | |
| 14 | Russia | 61.10 | |
| 15 | Netherlands | 60.02 | |
| 16 | Samoa | 59.57 | |
| 17 | Fiji | 58.65 | |
| 18 | Hong Kong | 58.31 | |
| 19 | Sweden | 56.01 | |
| 20 | Kazakhstan | 55.97 | |
| *Change from the previous week | |||
History edit
On June 22, 1985 the Italian women's national team made their international debut against France. The match ended 0–0, they played again a year later in Bardos, with France winning 12–0. Italy scored their first points in their third match against France when the two neighbors met in Rome in 1987, France won 16–4.
In 1988 Italy participated in the first European championship organized in Bourg-en-Bresse in France by the local women's club. In addition to the hosts, the other two participants were Great Britain and the Netherlands. Italy finished last with three losses. The inaugural edition of this championship, while significant for being the first competition for women's national teams, was never recognized as official by FIRA.
Italian Rugby Federation entry edit
In 1991 the management of women's rugby was handed over to the Italian Rugby Federation. Their first commitment was the selection of the team for the inaugural edition of the World Cup which was held in April of that same year in Wales. The Azzurre, after having finished last in their pool, were placed in the Plate quarter-finals. They had their first victory in the tournament after defeating Sweden 18–0 in the Plate quarter-final but lost to Canada 6–0 in the Plate semi-final.
The progress of the national team was slow. In their first 15 years of existence, up to the end of 2000, they played in only 33 official matches. In 1995 they came third in the European championship organized at home in Treviso, a result equaled one year later in Madrid, Spain. After a first round elimination with a sixth place finish at the 1997 European Championship, they finished 12th at the 1998 Women's Rugby World Cup in the Netherlands.
They finished 7th at the 1999 European Championship and 8th in 2001. They won their first Nations Cup title in Veneto in 2002 ahead of the Rugby World Cup, in which Italy finished in twelfth place. Italy won the 2005 European Championship which was held in Hamburg in Germany. In the 2006 Nations Cup Italy successfully defended their title.
Admission to the Six Nations edit
In December 2006, the Executive Committee of the Six Nations decided to align the composition of all competitions of the tournament with the men's, which included England, Wales, Ireland, Scotland, France and Italy; at the time the only difference with the women's tournament was the presence of Spain, which the committee replaced with Italy starting in 2007.
-
Italy women's national rugby union team in 2013.
-
Italy women's national rugby union team in 2014 during 6 nations tournament.
Records edit
Rugby World Cup edit
| Rugby World Cup | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Round | Position | GP | W | D | L | PF | PA | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1991 | Plate semi-final | N/A | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 34 | 31 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1994 | Did not participate | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1998 | 11th place playoff | 12th | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 108 | 81 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2002 | 11th place playoff | 12th | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 45 | 121 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2006 | Did not participate | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2010 | Did not qualify | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2014 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2017 | 9th place playoff | 9th | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 75 | 117 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2021 | Quarter-final | – | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 58 | 79 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Total | 5/9 | 9th | 22 | 8 | 0 | 14 | 320 | 429 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Six Nations edit
| Italy | |
|---|---|
| Tournaments | 16 |
| Outright Wins | 0 |
| Grand Slams | 0 |
| Triple Crowns | — |
| Wooden Spoons | 3 |
Rugby Europe Women's Championship edit
| Competition | Total | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| European Championship | 3 | 1 | 3 | 7 |
Overall edit
See: List of Italy women's national rugby union team matches
(Full internationals only)
Correct as of 11 February 2023
| Opponent | First game | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | Percentage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Belgium | 2006 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.00% |
| Canada | 1991 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0.00% |
| England | 1991 | 23 | 0 | 0 | 23 | 0.00% |
| France | 1985 | 26 | 4 | 0 | 22 | 12.50% |
| Great Britain | 1988 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0.00% |
| Germany | 1996 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 100.00% |
| Ireland | 1997 | 20 | 2 | 0 | 18 | 10.00% |
| Japan | 2002 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 66.67% |
| Kazakhstan | 2001 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0.00% |
| Netherlands | 1988 | 8 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 62.50% |
| Russia | 1998 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 100.00% |
| Samoa | 2013 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.00% |
| Scotland | 1995 | 22 | 15 | 1 | 6 | 68.18% |
| South Africa | 2018 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.00% |
| Spain | 1991 | 15 | 6 | 0 | 10 | 33.33% |
| Sweden | 1991 | 8 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 62.50% |
| United States | 2012 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 33.33% |
| Wales | 1999 | 21 | 7 | 1 | 13 | 33.33% |
| Summary | 1985 | 164 | 57 | 3 | 104 | 34.76% |
Players edit
Current squad edit
On 6 March 2023, Italy named a 38-player squad for the 2023 Women's Six Nations Championship.[2][3]
| Player | Position | Age | Caps | Club |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sara Barattin | Scrum-half | 36 | 111 | Arredissima Villorba Rugby |
| Francesca Barro | Prop | 23 | 1 | Valsugana Rugby Padova |
| Jessica Busato | Centre | 29 | 11 | Arredissima Villorba Rugby |
| Gaia Buso | Centre | 0 | Arredissima Villorba Rugby | |
| Beatrice Capomaggi | Centre | 26 | 7 | Arredissima Villorba Rugby |
| Alice Cassaghi | Prop | 3 | ||
| Giulia Cavina | Flanker | 23 | 0 | CUS Milano |
| Mathilde Cheval | Centre | 0 | Valsugana Rugby Padova | |
| Alyssa D'Incà | Centre | 21 | 15 | Arredissima Villorba Rugby |
| Giordana Duca | Lock | 30 | 34 | Valsugana Rugby Padova |
| Valeria Fedrighi | Lock | 30 | 28 | Stade Toulousain |
| Giada Franco | Flanker | 26 | 23 | Rugby Colorno |
| Alessandra Frangipani | Flanker | 19 | 3 | Arredissima Villorba Rugby |
| Lucia Gai | Prop | 31 | 29 | Valsugana Rugby Padova |
| Elisa Giordano | Flanker | 32 | 27 | Valsugana Rugby Padova |
| Francesca Granzotto | Scrum-half | 21 | 4 | Unione Rugby Capitolina |
| Alessia Gronda | Wing | 22 | 0 | CUS Torino |
| Laura Gurioli | Hooker | 28 | 2 | Arredissima Villorba Rugby |
| Isabella Locatelli | Lock | 28 | 23 | Rugby Colorno |
| Veronica Madia | Fly-half | 28 | 27 | Rugby Colorno |
| Alessia Margotti | Lock | 23 | 1 | Valsugana Rugby Padova |
| Gaia Maris | Prop | 21 | 18 | Valsugana Rugby Padova |
| Aura Muzzo | Wing | 26 | 29 | Arredissima Villorba Rugby |
| Vittoria Ostuni Minuzzi | Wing | 21 | 20 | Valsugana Rugby Padova |
| Alessia Pilani | 0 | |||
| Alissa Ranuccini | Flanker | 22 | 2 | Rugby Colorno |
| Beatrice Rigoni | Centre | 27 | 32 | Valsugana Rugby Padova |
| Sofia Rolfi | Wing | 21 | 0 | Rugby Colorno |
| Sara Seye | Prop | 22 | 15 | Transvecta Rugby Calvisano |
| Francesca Sgorbini | Flanker | 22 | 18 | ASM Romagnat |
| Michela Sillari | Centre | 30 | 74 | Valsugana Rugby Padova |
| Emanuela Stecca | Prop | 26 | 9 | Arredissima Villorba Rugby |
| Sofia Stefan | Scrum-half | 30 | 73 | Valsugana Rugby Padova |
| Emma Stevanin | Fly-half | 21 | 6 | Valsugana Rugby Padova |
| Arianna Toeschi | Scrum-half | 22 | 0 | CUS Torino |
| Sara Tounesi | Lock | 27 | 23 | ASM Romagnat |
| Silvia Turani | Prop | 27 | 22 | FC Grenoble |
| Vittoria Vecchini | Hooker | 21 | 15 | Valsugana Rugby Padova |
Previous squads edit
See also edit
References edit
- ^ "Women's World Rankings". World Rugby. Retrieved 20 November 2023.
- ^ Eddison, Paul (2023-03-06). "Giordano to lead Italy in TikTok Women's Six Nations". TikTok Women’s Six Nations. Retrieved 2023-04-29.
- ^ Rendell, Sarah (2023-04-21). "Italy Women's Six Nations Squad – Team to face Scotland". Rugby World. Retrieved 2023-04-29.
External links edit
- Federazione Italiana Rugby official site