Garbisi’s penalty miss denies Italy famous victory in France
Italy were within the width of a post of the biggest upset in Six Nations history as they drew 13-13 against 14-man France in Lille.
Paolo Garbisi had a lastgasp penalty attempt from 38 metres to register Italy’s firstever Championship win in France. but the ball toppled off its tee and, with just a few secondsleft on the shot clock after it had been replaced, Garbisi rushed his kick and struck the right-hand post.
France – who had won 45 of their previous 48 Test matches against Italy, including the past 14 in a row – had lost Jonathan Danty to a red card on the stroke of half-time for a high shot on opposite centre Ignacio Brex. Italy – who Scotland play a week on Saturday – remain bottom of the Guinness Six Nations, level on points with Wales, while France stay in fourth place, with their title dream over.
France started at breakneck pace and were rewarded with a seventh-minute try as skipperchar le sol li von got the ball
down under a pile of Azzurri bodies. Thomas Ramos dispatched a simple conversion and swiftly added a penalty as France suggested the game could be effectively over by half-time.
Italy spent most of the first half hanging on by their finger nails but the contest took a dramatic turn in the final play of the first half as they launched a rare attack.
There was clear head-onhead contact between Danty and Brex, and English referee Christophe Ridley reduced France to 14 men with a yellow card. Martin Page-relo provided further punishment to France from long range,
and Ridley confirmed after the interval that the bunker review system had upgraded Danty’s yellow to red.
France made light of their numerical disadvantage as their forwards rallied for R amos to land his second penalty but Ga rb is ire plied to cut the gap to seven points.
Italy drew level 10 minutes from time as Leonardo Marin found Ange Capuozzo with a superb offload. Garbisi converted but then failed to top it as Italy, with only two Six Nations wins over France since joining the Championship in 2000, fell agonisingly short of a second success in 45 matches.