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Good afternoon rugby fans and welcome to ESPN's live coverage of this Super Saturday opener.
Wales return to the Millennium (sorry, Principality) Stadium after last weekend's agonising defeat by England looking to end their Six Nations campaign on a high, while Italy come to Cardiff with the latest relegation debate ringing in their ears. Skipper Sergio Parisse was pretty clear in his objections to the whole idea on Friday, but he'll have to be at his brilliant best to prevent his Azzurri side getting whitewashed today.
ESPN's reporter Martyn Thomas will be providing insights from the stadium this afternoon, and we'll be doing our best to entertain and inform on this blockbuster day of Six Nations action.
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| 2 |
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It's a beefy start from the two packs, with both sets of forwards running into each other hard on the halfway line. Wales look to make a break down George North's flank but it gets bogged down and it's a scrum penalty to the home side just inside the Italian half.
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| 3 |
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Sound the Jamie Roberts alarm! Wales boss the scrum and away goes the hulking No.12 through the Italian midfield.
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| 4 |
7 - 0 |
Try! Wales win their own lineout ball on the Italian five metre line and scrum-half Rhys Webb -- back in the side after a lengthy injury lay-off -- gathers from the back of the maul to scurry over from short-range.
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| 5 |
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| 7 |
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It's Italy's turn to worry the tryline as they work it through the forward phases inside the Welsh 22.
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| 9 |
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Italy blot their copybook by gifting Wales a free-kick and Dan Biggar absolutely boots it to halfway. Great clearance from the Welsh 10.
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| 11 |
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After the viewing pain of several re-set scrums, some nifty work from Rhys Webb releases Jonathan Davies down the left. Possession swaps hands several times before Wales make it back to the Italian 22. It's all a bit Sevens at the moment!
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| 12 |
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Ouch! George North was on the end of a crunching Francesco Minto tackle there. He's taking some time to right himself.
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| 14 |
10 - 0 |
Dan Biggar completes his dance routine to pop a simple penalty between the posts. Wales into double figures after just 14 minutes. Ominous...
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| 15 |
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| 16 |
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George North might be back on his feet but Wales' Justin Tipuric is down. Looks like he took a heavy bang on the head and he's off for a HIA -- Head Injury Assessment.
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| 17 |
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| 18 |
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David Odiete's teammates won't be thanking him for that. The Italian fullback dithers as he collects a long clearance kick and is sacked inside his in-goal area. Scrum for Wales on the five metre line, they win a penalty and then scrum-half Guglielmo Palazzani compounds the problem by tackling Rhys Webb to early. The 9 goes to the bin.
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| 20 |
13 - 0 |
Biggar - penalty goal
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| 21 |
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| 22 |
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Yikes! George North berates teammate Liam Williams for carrying into contact rather than popping a pass to him on the right wing. Georgie Boy is not impressed!
Confirmation that Tipuric's knock to the head is too severe for him to continue. Ross Moriarty will be on for the duration.
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| 25 |
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Scrum to Italy and it's their first effort with Palazzani in the bin. Fullback Odiete is playing scrum-half. In goes the feed and... Wales are pinged for collapsing in the front row. Not a bad result for the Italians.
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| 26 |
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| 27 |
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Italy were doing so well to hold back the Welsh tide but they're under real pressure in their 22 now. First Dan Lydiate, then Liam Williams go scurrying through the tacklers. Only a wild long pass out to the left thwarts a clear try-scoring opportunity for the hosts.
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| 28 |
18 - 0 |
Try! Wales finally make the extra man count! Dan Biggar receives the ball from a Welsh line-out win and beats the out-of-position hooker Davide Giazzon. He exchanges passes with Jamie Roberts in midfield and goes over to ignite the Millennium Stadium fans. A well-worked try but Italy will be kicking themselves after holding out with just 14 men for so long.
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| 29 |
20 - 0 |
Biggar - conversion
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| 30 |
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| 32 |
27 - 0 |
Try! Italy are back to 15 men but down by another seven points! Wales run it through the hands from their own 22, George North doing the damage down the right. He passes infield to Dan Bigger, who then finds Jonathan Davies on his left. The powerful Welsh hooker runs into the open field ahead of him before dotting down between the posts.
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| 33 |
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| 34 |
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This is better from Italy. Working it through the phases in Welsh territory. They win a penalty and Palazzani takes a quick tap-and-go.
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| 35 |
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Italy are suddenly dropping like flies. Luke McLean and Kelly Haimona take to the field after Mattia Bellini and Andrea Pratichetti go off. 27-0 down and we're not even at half-time yet. This could be a bit of a humiliation...
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| 38 |
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Referee Romain Poite brings the two captains together for a moan about scrummaging after the front-rows eat dirt once again. When are we going to get that set-piece sorted?
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| 40 |
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Italy kick a penalty to touch and win the resulting line-out. It comes to nothing and Poite blows for half-time. 27-0 down with another 40 minutes to go... It certainly doesn't look good for the Azzurri. They're doing very little to nip that relegation debate in the bud.
ESPN's Martyn Thomas has the view from the Millennium Stadium press box:
But for the sight of Justin Tipuric stumbling down the tunnel following an awkward fall, that was a perfect 40 minutes for Wales. Warren Gatland's side started the match with intent but in truth Italy have been the perfect guests, never threatening to do anything other than roll over. Wales have scored three tries -- including a try of the Six Nations contender and a score for the returning Rhys Webb -- but they haven't had to do an awful lot to do so. Indeed, had the men in red displayed a little more composure at times during a first half played almost exclusively in the Italian half, they could have scored a few more. This is not the send off Jacques Brunel would have wanted as he bids farewell to the national team with a whimper.
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| 40 |
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They're back out for the second-half and it will take something miraculous for Italy to come back into this.
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| 41 |
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Wales at times look like the Harlem Globetrotters and at others look like they're playing with a bar of soap as they pass it around inside the Italian half. It makes no difference how they play, though, as Italy can't hang onto a tackle, giving the hosts all the time they need to experiment.
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| 42 |
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| 44 |
32 - 0 |
Try! Wales work it through the hands from a ruck inside the Italian 22. George North produces a beautiful offload out the back of the hand to Jamie Roberts, who fires up the engine to sprint over on the right wing. This could end up as the proverbial cricket score...
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| 45 |
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| 46 |
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| 47 |
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Italian fans will be holding their heads in their hands! David Odiete makes a darting run deep into Welsh territory, but he panics before he reaches the tackle and looks to offload blindly behind him. No Italian hands are there to gather and it's a rare chance wasted by the visitors.
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| 48 |
37 - 0 |
George North. Man of the Match.
We haven't even reached the hour mark but North has stamped his mark all over this game. He breaks into the open field from halfway, leaves Luke McLean with twisted blood, and zooms through the non-existent Italian defence to dot down and claim the try he richly deserves.
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| 49 |
39 - 0 |
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| 51 |
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That's more like it Italy! Debutant Jacopo Sarto receives the ball from brother Leonardo on the right wing and cuts through to the Welsh five metre line. He attempts to offload in the tackle but can't find Italian hands. Still, it's territory, and Italy have had precious little of that so far.
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| 53 |
39 - 5 |
Try! Italy do make the territory count! They heave and push from a five metre lineout, before Guglielmo Palazzani gathers from the base and rolls over onto the line. Even after just 55 minutes, it's nothing more than a consolation try. The question is, can Italy add any more respectability to the scoreline?
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| 54 |
39 - 7 |
Some debate as to whether it was Gonzalo Garcia or Guglielmo Palazzani who touched down for the try. We'll clear that up for you as soon as possible.
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| 56 |
44 - 7 |
Try! Wales respond straight away and in some style. Jamie Roberts fires a pass out to Jonathan Davies on his left. The 13 bats it on again to fullback Liam Williams, who skips past Leonardo Sarto and flies over for Wales' sixth try so far.
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| 58 |
46 - 7 |
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| 60 |
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Italy enjoy some territory but it's slow ball as the forwards batter on the Welsh door.
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| 61 |
46 - 12 |
Try! Hold on, it worked! Guglielmo Palazzani spins it out to half-back partner Tommaso Allan, who takes it into contact but manages to offload. Gonzalo Garcia, playing at 13 after the introduction of Haimona, gather and darts over between the posts for Italy's second try.
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| 62 |
46 - 14 |
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| 64 |
51 - 14 |
Try! Another lineout, another try. Jake Ball gathers from the top, skipper Dan Lydiate grabs hold of replacement flanker Ross Moriarty, and the pair barge over for Wales. Moriarty is the man to touch down and the Italians are beginning to look tired out there.
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| 65 |
53 - 14 |
Priestland - conversion
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| 67 |
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Credit to Italy. They're still trying to run with the ball in hand. Wales holding firm in defence on halfway.
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| 69 |
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Haimona boots an Italian penalty to the Welsh corner and the blue shirts are once again passing it around in midfield. Nice to see, rather than hunkering down in the forwards.
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| 70 |
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The game is really opening up with 10 minutes remaining. George North goes charging down the Welsh right wing. He attempts to pop it infield, but Italian skipper Sergio Parisse is wise to it. He intercepts, and it's Italy's turn to charge downfield. Gareth Anscombe then gathers for Wales and races back in the opposite direction. Lung-busting stuff from both sides!
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| 71 |
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Parisse looks to have turned his ankle in intercepting that North pass. He's still on the field, but looks in some discomfort.
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| 73 |
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Wales have the put-in for a rare second-half scrum. They gather -- inside their own half -- and once again set the backs running. They gain metres but don't threaten the Italian tryline. Entertaining rugby though, which has been at a premium during this year's Six Nations.
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| 74 |
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Stat attack from ESPN's Martyn Thomas in Cardiff:
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| 75 |
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Phew! It's breathless stuff out there with five minutes remaining. Wales have the territory and possession, heaping pressure on the Italian tryline. Gareth Anscombe fires a long pass out to his left, but Gonzalo Garcia attempts the intercept. He can't hold on (in fact, he's lucky to escape a binning) but Romain Poite isn't interested in showing cards this late in the day.
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| 76 |
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| 78 |
58 - 14 |
Try! What an entertaining end to this match!
Italy's David Odiete thinks he's home and dry as he intercepts and flies clear from his own 22. However, Poite's whistle thwarts the fullback's touchdown and the ball is swiftly returned to the Italian 22 for a Welsh penalty. They take it quickly and over goes Ross Moriarty for his second try. Italy complain as they had men out of position after Odiete's effort, but the try stands and the 60 point-mark is within sight.
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| 79 |
60 - 14 |
Priestland - conversion
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| 80 |
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Try! Possession goes to Wales, to Italy, back to Wales. Play moves to the right wing, to the left wing, back to the right. It's like a ping-pong match involving 30 giant men. No one can hold onto it, no one seems to want the ball. Then up pops Gareth Davies to gather after some woeful Italian defending. He touches down and it's a thrashing for Italy. What a hell-raising end to the game!
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| 80+1 |
65 - 14 |
DG Davies - try
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| 80+2 |
67 - 14 |
ESPN's Martyn Thomas has this view from the Millennium Stadium:
Wales arrived at the Millennium Stadium intent on treating the wounds of last week's Twickenham horror show, and in Italy they found a willing sparring partner. Shorn of several keys players, the Azzurri had no answer to their hosts, who swarmed over them from the off, Rhys Webb notching the game's first try in less than five minutes. If Wales were a tad wasteful in the opening 40 minutes, they were ruthless after half-time to rack up nine tries. Italy, who have now conceded 18 tries in their last two Six Nations matches, rallied only once Wales had put the game to bed. A hapless afternoon summed up in the last 10 minutes as David Odiete streaked away to notch an interception try, only to see play called back. From the resulting play, Ross Moriarty burrowed over for his second score. Wales -- bar Justin Tipuric's head knock -- bow out on a high, Jacques Brunel on the most chastening of defeats.
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