Brad Johnstone has named a 35 man squad for Italy's opening training camp of the season, the first after the summer tour to Samoa and Fiji where Italy lost all four games.

The door remains shut for last season's captain Alessandro Troncon who refused to tour the South Pacific with the national team in order to play for his club Montferrand in the French league play off. Also dropped are young prop Tino Paoletti, who played 5 out of 5 in the last Six Nations, fly half Andrea Scanavacca, full back Corrado Pilat and utility back Cocco Mazzariol, all part of the squad during the summer tour.

However back in the Azzuri line up is centre Nick Zisti, a former Bradford Bulls player, who broke a leg last spring playing for Rome, while the n°10 shirt remains on the shoulder of young Argentinean born Ramiro Pez who won his first cap for Italy against Samoa last July.
New comers are French born lock Xavier Plateret from Narbonne, 25, and Petrarca Padova's prop Andrea Muraro, 29, both uncapped, while grounded for the next two moths will be lock Carlo Checchinato who broke his arm in a friendly for Treviso against Toulouse, in Bourgoin, last week.

Italy will play Canada in Rovigo, on November 11, Rumania in Benevento, Nov. 18 and the mighty All Blacks in Genova, Nov. 25.

The squad is as follows:
Forwards: Andrea Benatti, Aaron Persico (Viadana) Mauro Bergamasco, Carlo Cecchinato, Andrea Gritti, Alessandro Moscardi, Stefano Saviozzi (Benetton Treviso) David Dal Maso (Rovigo), Carlo Caione, Giampiero De Carli, Andrea Lo Cicero (Roma Olimpic) Andrea De Rossi Luca Mastrodomenico (Calvisano) Andrea Muraro, Simone Stocco (Petrarca Padova) Salvatore Perugini, Maurizio Zaffiri (L'Aquila) Xavier Plateret (Narbonne), Sebastian Rondinelli (Grenoble)
Backs: Denis Dallan, Manuel Dallan, Nicola Mazzucato, Giacomo Preo (Bentton Treviso), Juan Francesio, Juan Manuel Queirolo, Lisandro Villagra (Viadana) Luca Martin (Northampton) Andrea Masi (L'Aquila) Giampiero Mazzi, Ramiro Pez, Matthew Pini, Giovanni Raineri, Fabio Roselli, Nick Zisti (Roma Olimpic), Christian Stoica (Narbonne)