Italy braced for All Blacks onslaught

Rome – Italy coach Conor O’Shea (right) concedes his side are braced for a “David against Goliath” challenge against world champions New Zealand in their final November Test today at the Stadio Olimpico.

The All Blacks arrive in Rome having lost 16-9 to Ireland in Dublin last weekend, a further wakeup call for the world’s top team after a defeat by the Springboks back in September.

But even if New Zealand’s aura of invincibility has started to wane less than a year out from the World Cup, O’Shea is expecting another rough ride from a side the Italians have never beaten in 14 previous meetings.

The last clash between the two teams was in 2016 in Rome, with the All Blacks winning 68-10.

“They are like Brazil in football, it’s a game that everyone wants to play in. We want to end the November Tests with a good performance, playing our best rugby,” said the Irishman.

O’Shea made just one enforced change to the side that lost 26-7 to Australia in Padua last weekend. Earlier in the month they beat Georgia 28-17 but lost 54-7 to Six Nations champions Ireland in Chicago.

Benetton Treviso wing Luca Sperandio comes in for Mattia Bellini who scored Italy’s only try against the Wallabies before going off with a shoulder injury.

But the Italians have two New Zealand-born players – Jayden Hayward and Dean Budd – in their ranks.

Fullback Hayward, 31, was New Zealand’s promising player of the year in his debut season with Taranaki in 2008, but has been playing for Treviso since 2014, making his Test debut last year.

Lock Budd, 32, joined Treviso in 2012 and has played 14 Tests since qualifying for Italy in 2017.

New Zealand coach Steve Hansen has rung the changes after last week’s loss to Ireland.

Flyhalf Beauden Barrett and fullback Damian McKenzie were retained in a starting line-up featuring 11 changes from the side that ran out in Dublin, resisting calls to start Richie Mo’unga.

Instead Mo’unga stays on the bench as Hansen sticks with his strategy of using Barrett and McKenzie as dual playmakers.

The combination has failed to fire so far, with the world champions scraping to a 16-15 win over England before losing 16-9 to Ireland last week. –