Dal Telegraph (
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/rugbyu ... eport.html )
Read a full match report of the autumn international game between Italy and New Zealand at the San Siro Stadium, Milan on Saturday Nov 14 2009.
By Steve James at San Siro, Milan
Published: 4:20PM GMT 14 Nov 2009
Not one of rugby's great games, but undoubtedly one of rugby's great occasions. This was a sporting event that will linger long in the memory, even if the match was a bit of a stinker on a dank day. The iconic San Siro stadium - home to both the footballing giants AC and Inter Milan - was packed to its imposing red rafters with more than 80,000 awe-inspired spectators. Rugby was breaking new ground.
The San Siro had seen nothing like this before. Well, it had seen international rugby before, but Romania beating Italy in front of just 9,000 in 1988 doesn't really count.
This was no ticketing gimmick either. The usual full prices were asked, the usual full prices were paid. This was solely down to the attraction of New Zealand. Those, including this correspondent, who averred that they had left their aura at home when embarking upon this particular European tour, need to think again.
It was ironic too that the All Blacks should be playing in such a famous football stadium on the very day that their own footballers qualified for the World Cup finals for only the second time. In beating Bahrain in Wellington they attracted a crowd of 35,500, larger than that for any of the All Blacks' six home internationals this year. The All Blacks are clearly now more popular abroad than at home.
The pre-match atmosphere was goose-bump stuff. Really. Just ask Kiwi hooker Corey Flynn. As the New Zealanders waited for Italy to arrive to some intimidatory `fight-time' music, he peeled away from his team-mates to gaze around the stadium ablaze with flash bulbs. Wonderment doesn't tell the half of it.
The Italian anthem was rousingly sung by Denis Dallan, Italy's former wing (rugby that is!), who now fancies himself as a tenor. And the haka was observed in reverential silence by the crowd. Italy's players faced it head-on, their line, led by Leicester's Martin Castrogiovanni, advancing ever closer to the All Blacks. There was no Richard Cockerill/Norm Hewitt confrontation (at another rather famous football stadium, Old Trafford, in 1997), although afterwards the flame-haired centre Gonzalo Garcia did hang around in aggressive pose for rather longer than necessary. Little surprise he was sin-binned later.
At least haka-lessons had been learnt. The last time I watched Italy versus New Zealand was in the World Cup of 2007 in Marseilles. The Italians thought it a good idea to turn their back on the war-dance. It enraged the Kiwis no end. They smashed the Italians 76-14.
There was never going to happen yesterday, even if there was never any real doubt about the outcome. Italy have still not beaten the Kiwis in 12 attempts. Not even their traditional opening 20 minutes of blood and thunder inconvenienced the All Blacks overly here (one seismic hit by Gonzalo Canale on Cory Jane aside). So New Zealand led at half-time 14-3 with a try from Flynn, with Italy's only threat coming from their formidable scrummage (Castrogiovanni was man of the match) and, as you would expect, the odd moment of splendour from the subliminal No 8 Sergio Parisse. They offer so little in attack that they could ill afford fly half Craig Gower once spilling prime turnover ball.
It appeared the match was over at the interval, and so it proved. New Zealand stuttered, and Italy bulldozed. Stalemate. True to type, the final minutes were spent on a series of scrummages on New Zealand's line. A penalty try seemed certain. It did not come. Neemia Tialata was shown a yellow card, and, with Luke McAlister at blindside flanker, New Zealand survived.
As the All Blacks head for London today what was there for woeful England to make of this ahead of next Saturday's encounter? To be honest, the hardly startling news that New Zealand's seconds could beat them. This was enough evidence of that sort of strength in depth, with twelve changes from the side that overcame Wales last weekend. It was not a stunning performance but not many reserve sides would have prevailed here. Even with three debutants in the back line, nobody looked anything less than Test class.
One debutant, wing Ben Smith, dropped his first high ball but still recovered to give a classy performance. As did another newcomer, fly half Mike Delany. Dan Carter was banned, but he would have been rested anyway. He will back, and doubtless New Zealand will kick more than they did without him yesterday. But when you can kick that well…
For real envy take a look at McAlister, still second choice inside centre. What a player of composure, clout and silkiness. And that's without the hefty right boot that contributed 15 points.
In broader terms, though, this experience here just has to be repeated. Milan may not itself be a rugby-mad city, but its surrounding areas beat strongly to the oval-ball tune. The north is Italy's rugby heartland. Rome, with its small 32,000-capacity Stadio Flaminio, might as well be a million miles away.
