Fly-Half - No. 10 (The Dominguez Wannabe)

Diego Dominguez was one of the greatest players ever and Italy have struggled to replace him. This is all well known so don't worry I am not going to go through the history of what has happened since Dominguez retired (many dark days). Lets take a look at what is happening at fly-half these days.

No other position sums up where Italy is at better than fly-half. Their is the elder generation of Tommaso Allan and Carlo Canna (26 and above) and then the younger generation (22 and below). Franco Smith has chosen to include both Zebre deputy fly-half Michelangelo Biondelli (21-years-old) and Benetton deputy fly-half Antonio Rizzi (22-years-old) in his preparation squad. If you look at each generation's path to the national team you see the stark difference which is occurring with player development. Italy's No.1 No.10 is Tommaso Allan who spent the early part of his career as part of Scotland's youth setup before choosing to make the switch to Italy. Then there is Carlo Canna who came through the State Police rugby team before turning professional with Zebre. In contrast, young guns Biondelli and Rizzi have gone through the progression that a young rugby player expects to go through. They have both played for the Italian National Academy (who play in the Italian second division) before representing the nations Under-20s team. They have both tested themselves in the Top12 division in Italy, Biondelli with Fiamme Oro and Rizzi with Petrarca Padova, before landing contracts with their respective Pro14 clubs. This is the case all across the squad with a generation of players under 22 (Fischetti, Riccioni, Cannone, Licata, etc) who have made similar progressions through their youth. There are exceptions to this generational divide (aged 23 to 25) but this is mostly players drafter in from the English school system (Polledri, Braley and Negri). It remains to be seen what impact this will have on the national team but it has to be a good thing that this new generation of young players will already have tight bonds from their years in the youth development process. But I can hear you screaming 'The Six Nations is 10 days away! We haven't got time for all this future stuff!'. So lets take a look at Italy's current options at fly-half.

Tommaso Allan (Age: 26 Caps: 54)

Although it is easy to criticise Allan for his defence or his goal kicking I have to remind myself of how lucky we are to have a decent fly-half. He isn't world class, he isn't Diego Dominguez, but he is a decent international fly-half. It needs to be remembered that not only has he got 54 caps, not only is he Italy's 3rd highest points scorer, but he is a really good player. Lets think back to where we were at the start of the last decade. Our options at fly-half were Kris Burton (30-years-old with 4 caps) or Luciano Orquera (29-years-old with 17 caps). This isn't to discredit either of them but just to pose as a reminder of how lucky the team is to have Allan. He may miss the odd straightforward place kick but easily makes up for it with his tries. 11 tries in 54 appearances is a good record when compared to someone like Finn Russell who has 6 tries in 49 test for Scotland. Allan's kicking has been a problem especially this season where missed kicks have cost Benetton a couple of wins already. This has seen him drop behind Ian Keatley in the clubs pecking order. If Italy are going to compete with Tier 1 teams they need more consistent place kicking and for this reason Franco Smith has brought in Albert Keuris as skills and kicking coach. Keuris should help Allan's game overall but most importantly his place kicking. Keuris worked under Smith at the Cheetahs and saw vast improvements in the teams kicking percentages.

As one of the more experienced players in the squad a lot is expected of Allan this Six Nations and with big ball carriers in the pack I hope he gets a bit more fast ball to show his attacking threat. A big question for this Six Nations is who will be providing Allan with this fast ball from scrum half. You will have to wait for my next post for more detail on this.

Just some of Allan's 11 tries for Italy

Carlo Canna (Age: 27 Caps: 39)

Over in Parma Carlo Canna has been getting a lot of rugby with Zebre seeing 300 more minutes than Allan this season. Canna has been a mainstay in the Zebre team for five seasons and is a much more adept fly-half than when he first joined their ranks in 2015. His first international cap came soon after signing with Zebre and his performance against France in the 2016 Six Nations suggested Italy had found a real gem. A change of coach and the return of Tommaso Allan saw Canna's game time reduced and since then he has had to mostly make do with appearances off the bench. But like many of his Zebre teammates he is finding good form just in time for the Six Nations. What I like about Canna is he is the kind of rugby player that you always imagine an Italian fly-half should be. Italy's struggles at fly-half have always surprised people due to the nations love of football but in Canna they have someone who loves to play with their feet. His short range kicking game is excellent and he knows how to keep an opposition defence on its toes. With his sleight frame and scrum cap he is a flanker's dream tackle, but he has started to use this more and more to his advantage. Like Jonathan Sexton he often looks to draw the hit from a defender if it means opening up space for a supporting runner. Although Allan's form for the Azzurri in recent years has been brilliant it will be interesting to see if Canna's recent upturn in form will see him preferred. This might depend heavily on whether Smith opts for Canna's club teammate Marcelo Violi at scrum half. Since following in his father's footsteps by joining the Italian Police's rugby team it has been a long road for Canna, but at 27 years old there is no reason why Italy's 9th highest points scorer can't get many more points for the national team.

Canna's Maldini-esque slide tackle vs England

Michelangelo Biondelli (Age: 21 Caps: 0)

Although Michelangelo Biondelli has only played a handful of games for Zebre he has been rewarded with his first call up to the national squad. Although equally efficient as a counter attacking fullback, I think that Biondelli's kicking game makes him a bright prospect for Italy at fly-half. As mentioned, Biondelli has made his way through the Italian youth setup with the under-17s, 18s & 20s as well as playing for the national academy. Last season he had a brilliant time with Fiamme Oro in the Top12 scoring 6 tries in 14 appearances and gained his reward by becoming Canna's understudy at Zebre. He already looks comfortable in the Pro14 and has the experience of beating Stade Francais (in Paris) under his belt. I think that, unless Italy are plagued with injuries, we will have to wait a couple of years before we see him play a Six Nations game. This is no reason not to expose him to the national team's training camp which will allow him a glimpse of what is to come if he works hard and gets even more experience with Zebre.

Antonio Rizzi (Age: 22 Caps: 0)

Along with Biondelli Italy have another young fly-half prospect in Antonio Rizzi. The former U20s captain has been on Italian rugby fan's radars for a long time after some scintillating performances in the youth setup. Now with Benetton he has a chance to convince everyone of why we should believe the hype. Similarly to Biondelli I think his call up to the national squad will serve as a way of introducing him to the top levels of performance and it may be a few years before we see him in the Six Nations. The Six Nations will also allow him a period of game time with Benetton while Allan is away. He is likely to still be on the bench due to Ian Keatley but his 5 tries in 16 appearances (only 2 of these being starts) prove his pace and attacking intent can really threaten a tired team in the dying stages of a match. 

Rizzi showing his pace

In Allan and Canna Italy have a reliable 1st and 2nd fly-half partnership who both offer different options. Whilst the Six Nations is probably a step too soon for the two young fly-halves it is good to know that over the coming years these two players will be competing with each other to improve and prove they have what it takes to take over from Allan and Canna. It seems that Italy now have a steady stream of fly-halves coming through their youth system with current U20 captain Paulo Garbisi already looking like a player who will feature heavily for Italy in the future. He is performing well for his club side Petrarca Padova and it will be interesting to see who is first to offer him a pro contract. The promise this younger generation is showing suggests that what has been Italy's problem position for nearly two decades, since Diego Dominguez's retirement, could soon be their strength. 

Promising U20s captain Paulo Garbisi

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