Italy’s Tommaso Allan will make his 80th international appearance when they host England in the Six Nations on Saturday and the flyhalf would love to finally experience a win in Rome.
Allan has tasted victory with Italy, including a win in Scotland in 2015 and a famous triumph over Australia in Florence in 2022, but has yet to experience success at Stadio Olimpico.
“Obviously, we would love to win a game at home, that’s for sure. I haven’t won a game in Rome and I’d love to do that because we owe them (the fans) that much,” Allan told Reuters.
“They always come out and I’ve heard it’s probably a sold-out stadium for England, which is incredible, and hopefully we can do them proud.”
Allan made his debut in 2013, coming off the bench to score a try in a defeat by Australia, and over a decade later is the most experienced member of the squad.
“I never thought, 11 years ago, that I would have played 10 Six Nations, three World Cups and all that, so it’s quite surreal,” the 30-year-old said.
“Obviously you don’t think about it too much, you think about the games as much as possible, but once it settles in, it’s a nice milestone to achieve.”
SHELL-SHOCKED
Italy were shell-shocked at last year’s World Cup, suffering heavy defeats by New Zealand and France, but with Gonzalo Quesada taking over as head coach from Kieran Crowley it has been easier to make a fresh start.
“We didn’t end the World Cup as we would have liked, but we’ve put that behind us, we’ve got a new set of coaches and we’ve learned from those mistakes,” Allan said.
Quesada has already explained that he won’t be completely changing things as the squad needs continuity.
“We’ve kept our DNA that we’ve had for the last two years but we’re trying to be a bit more pragmatic, in our exits especially. I think that’s what killed us a bit last year in the Six Nations,” Allan said.
“He’s a smart coach, he knows what he’s doing, the couple of things we have changed will only make us better, so that’s exciting.”
Allan has been selected at fullback for the England game, something he experienced last year under Crowley.
“My preferred position is 10 but I’ve played a lot at fullback, even for Perpignan this season,” Allan explained.
“It’s not going to change much in the way I play, I still try to defend and use my strong points, whether I play at 10 or 15.”
TOUGH START
Italy face a tough start to the campaign against England, the only side they have never beaten in the Six Nations.
“We know England are a very good team, they didn’t come third in the World Cup for no reason,” Allan said.
“They’ve got a very strong forward pack and some exciting backs, but we’re just trying to focus on ourselves right now, get our things right and we’ve looked at ways we can put pressure on them.”
A win over England would certainly silence the critics, but Allan takes little notice of those who question Italy’s place in the Six Nations after every heavy defeat or poor campaign.
“That’s all been going on as long as I’ve been here, let people say what they want to say,” he added.
“We know we’re worthy of this competition, so I think people just want to sell some newspapers, make some articles, so let them do that.”
Before Italy’s game, Allan is looking forward to Friday’s Six Nations opener between France and Ireland, which he believes will be very intense, if not quite the championship decider many predict.
“I think it’s going to be very open, a lot of teams can win it. We’re here to make a few upsets as well and we know we can beat the best teams if we all play to our potential.”
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