Wales vs. Italy: 3 Key Battles That Will Shape 2016 RBS 6 Nations Clash

Wales versus Italy at Cardiff’s Principality Stadium is the first game on the final day of the 2016 RBS Six Nations.

Despite being outplayed by England in the opening 40 minutes of their 25-21 defeat at Twickenham, Wales ought to be buoyed by their exceptional final quarter of the match.

Italy, meanwhile, go to Cardiff after being thrashed 58-15 by Ireland. The Azzurri must be extremely short on confidence, and we should expect them to suffer defeat on a similar scale against Wales.

With that in mind, Bleacher Report’s three key battles for this RBS Six Nations clash are intra-team questions that both sides will need to answer on Saturday to clarify their thinking for the rest of 2016.

In the 2016 RBS Six Nations, Italy have conceded a demoralising 157 points in four matches, at an average of 39.25 points shipped per game.

With an out-of-form Irish team scoring 58 against the Azzurri in Round 4, we should expect Italy’s total points conceded for the championship to surpass 200 after their visit to Wales.

Italy’s injury problems—most importantly they are without their best back, Michele Campagnaro—mean that Wales should be scoring between 40 and 60 points at the Principality Stadium. Anything short of that would be a disappointment.

Wales’ precision will determine just how one-sided the scoreboard will look at full-time.

Warren Gatland has a number of selection quandaries to settle for the rest of 2016, so the players in question will battle it out against Italy for the head coach’s favour.

Wales’ outstanding second-rower, Alun Wyn Jones, and their captain, Sam Warburton, both miss the Italy match through injury, and their replacements will have the opportunity to make their claims to Gatland. The catch is that they are battling with their team-mates.

Lock

Jones tends to be partnered in the second row by either the more powerful Bradley Davies or the athletic Luke Charteris.

Given that Gatland has yet to settle for either as Jones’ preferred partner, the two locks are partners and rivals against Italy.

Is Davies’ carrying effective enough to warrant a place ahead of the hard-working, defensive lineout expert?

Back Row

Warburton’s injury means Justin Tipuric, who started the first two matches against Ireland and Scotland, plays on the openside.

Wales’ most balanced back row would be the one that started against England: Dan Lydiate, Sam Warburton and Taulupe Faletau. And yet, it was totally outplayed at Twickenham.

Tipuric has an opportunity against Italy to claim that he is an indispensable part of the Welsh team and has more to offer than Lydiate, whose only noteworthy contribution is to Wales’ defence.

Scrum-half

The most interesting rivalry is at scrum-half. The Ospreys’ Rhys Webb looked set for a big Rugby World Cup before a pre-tournament injury against Italy ruled him out.

In his stead, the Scarlets’ Gareth Davies, man of the match against France, has been Wales’ most threatening back this Six Nations.

Gatland has opted to start with Webb against Italy, but he has two excellent No. 9s and seeing the two battle for the starting berth is going to be a key selection dilemma for Wales in 2016.

There have been murmurings in the French press, as highlighted by rugby writer Gavin Mortimer on Twitter on March 14, that Italy captain Sergio Parisse, 32, has put off talk of retirement after meeting with the man expected to take charge of the Azzurri, Conor O’Shea.

With a drubbing on the cards, Parisse’s team-mates have a battle on their hands to vindicate the great No. 8’s decision.

Italy’s players must also battle for their futures. Current head coach Jacques Brunel is stepping down at the end of this year's Six Nations.

Two victories against France and Ireland—both in the 2013 championship—and two wins over Scotland represent a meagre return for Brunel, but the players must put in a creditable performance to give the new boss some momentum to work with.