Below-par Scotland beaten by Italy in Six Nations
Women's Six NationsScotland (7) 17Tries: Rollie, Gallagher, McGhie Con: NelsonItaly (10) 25Tries: Sgorbini, Muzzo (2), Minuzzi, D'Inca
Scotland were left to rue a below-par performance after losing at home to Italy in round three of the Women's Six Nations.Chloe Rollie gave the Scots an early lead with the opening try, but the Azzurri struck back with scores from Francesca Sgorbini and Aura Muzzo to go in 10-7 up at the break.Evie Gallagher and Francesca McGhie crossed after the interval, but tries from Vittoria Ostuni Minuzzi, Alyssa D'Inca and a second from Muzzo sealed a deserved first victory for the Italians.Bryan Easson's side are left with one win from their three matches and face title-chasing England next, while Italy host France.The Scots struck first when the pack got a roll on from a line-out maul. The ball was whipped wide to Rollie and while she looked to have turned into too much traffic, the full-back stepped and powered her way to the tryline.The home side had the lead but it was Italy who were on top in the opening half hour. The visitors got their reward when Sgorbini breached the Scottish defence and dived over from close range.Italy scored a wonderful second try when centre Michela Sillari drew a couple of defenders and delayed her pass to perfection to set Muzzo free to score.The Scots finally generated some field position and were awarded a penalty just outside the Italy 22. Rather than look to level things up going into the break, they kicked for the corner, lost possession from the subsequent line-out and the chance was gone.
Three points down having barely fired a shot was by no means a disaster, but Scotland were in need of a spark and they got it early in the second half when a smart play from a 5m line-out sent Gallagher over to regain the lead.Italy showed no signs of carrying any scars from chastening losses to England and Ireland earlier in the championship.They were playing with confidence and greater fluency than their hosts, and when Lisa Thomson kicked loosely with a clearance, the Scots were punished.Ostuni Minuzzi fielded the kick, ran deep into the red zone to exchange passes with D'Inca and glide over for a terrific try.To make matters worse, Thomson was sin-binned for a high tackle as she tried to prevent the score and the home side were really up against it now.The visitors made hay with the Scots down a player, Beatrice Rigoni whipping a long ball out for D'Inca to beat the cover defence and score in the corner.Eight points behind and in a hole, Scotland finally started forcing the game down into Italian territory and McGhie skipped through to score and set up a gripping last five minutes.The great Scottish escape act did not materialise as Italy reclaimed the initiative and created space for Muzzo to score her second try of the afternoon and seal a memorable win for the Azzurri.
Line-ups
Scotland: Rollie; Lloyd, Orr, Thomson, McGhie; Nelson, Brebner-Holden; Young, Skeldon, Clarke, Bonar, Boyd, Malcolm (capt), McLachlan, Gallagher.Replacements: Martin, Bartlett, Poolman, Ferrie, Konkel, Stewart, Mattinson, Scott.Italy: Ostuni Minuzzi; Muzzo, Sillari, Rigoni, D'Inca; Stevanin, Stefan; Turani, Vecchini, Seye, Tounesi, Duca, Sgorbini, Veronese, Giordano (capt).Replacements: Spinelli, Stecca, Maris, Fedrighi, Ranuccini, Bitonci, Madia, Mannini.Referee: Aimee Barrett-Theron (SA)TMO: Rachel Horton (Aus)
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
BBC News
2 hours ago
- BBC News
Scotland players fear losing contracts after World Cup
More than half of Scotland women's squad fear being left without a professional contract and having to hunt for work after this summer's Rugby World Cup, a squad representative has claimed.A two-page statement sent to BBC Sport says only 15 members of the 38-player training squad are on year-long deals with Scottish could mean a number of the 23 who have been put on short-term arrangements will be looking for new employment and experiencing off-field upheaval by source claims that some players in the Rugby World Cup training camp are continuing to "suffer with their mental and emotional health following the potential loss of their contracts" as they prepare for the tournament, which is being hosted by added it was "not conducive" to "a positive performance environment within a squad".Scottish Rugby says it extended contracts to October to give players certainty for the event, which runs from 22 August to 27 added it had not yet confirmed which players would be offered contracts beyond October but intended to sort that in the coming weeks. The national body added: "Scottish Rugby has committed to providing confirmation of what the high-performance programme will look like by the end of June, at which time the players will be advised of the next steps in the contracting process, with individual meetings scheduled, and contracts concluded, in July ahead of the Rugby World Cup."In 2022, Scottish Rugby announced, external that 28 players would be offered professional remains unclear how many players beyond the 15 already on 12-month contracts will be offered new deals by the end of the of the Scotland training squad also have contracts with their club sides, the majority of which are PWR sides in that league does pay its players, it is not a professional league and most players combine playing with jobs or some Scotland players are not offered contracts beyond October, the source claims they will be left "job hunting or doing interviews during pre-season and during the World Cup".A group of players are understood to have approached the Women's Rugby Association (WRA) for advice. The WRA supported the Wales Women in 2024 following a long-running contract dispute with the Welsh Rugby approached by the BBC, the WRA was unable to confirm its position on representing the Scotland Scotland women do have some representation from the Rugby Players Scotland union, but a spokesperson confirmed that it only involves matters in the "collective interest" - for instance, agreeing a maternity policy for players. This does not currently include any individual contract Players Scotland told BBC Sport: "Rugby Players Scotland are working with our members to develop the collective interests of professional women's rugby in Scotland in collaboration with Scottish Rugby."Scotland's women are in pre-season training ahead of the Rugby World Cup in England. They play Wales in Manchester, in their opening Pool B game, on Saturday, 23 August.
The Courier
2 hours ago
- The Courier
Raith Rovers give fresh details of potential partnership with Rangers as they insist fans will have final say
Raith Rovers insist fans will have the final say after confirming 'co-operation' discussions have taken place with Rangers. The Stark's Park side have been linked with a tie-in with the Ibrox outfit under new rules encouraging clubs to enter into partnerships with teams in different divisions. The initiative, for players under the age of 21 who qualify for Scotland, is designed to expose more youngsters to first-team football through flexible loans. However, the Kirkcaldy outfit have confessed a collaboration could also involve players who fall outside the terms of the 'co-operation'. Director Ruaridh Kilgour says Raith recognise some supporters may not agree with such a formal agreement, with some fearing Barry Robson's side could lose out as a 'feeder team' for a Premiership club. However, with talks having stalled following Rangers' takeover, he has reassured fans they will be consulted if there are any developments. 'We first heard about this [co-operation system] probably at the tail end of last year,' he explained. 'And then it's become a bit more popular in conversation in the last two months as clubs are starting to now look at who they could potentially partner with. 'If I'm being honest it's not kind of one of [technical director] John Potter's priorities right now. There's a lot of other things going on, like just basically building a squad through the transfer window. 'But, completely out of the blue, Rangers contacted John and asked him to go for a meeting at Murray Park with Nils Koppen, the then technical director. 'They said that they'd pinpointed Raith Rovers as someone they would like to have a partnership with to develop their young players. 'They then came to Stark's Park the week after to have a look around and see what the facilities are like, which again they were really impressed with. 'The way it was left was that we asked them to come up with a proposal of what this could look like. 'They saw this as something where they could potentially send us other players. So players who are maybe a bit older than 21 and also players who weren't Scottish. 'It was left with Rangers to draw up a proposal.' Raith are awaiting a formal response and Koppen has since left his role following Rangers' takeover. In an interview with Raith TV, Kilgour added: 'The way we will then approach that is decided on three factors. 'Number one will be a football factor where Barry [Robson] and John would make a decision based purely on the playing side of it. 'We as a board would make a financial decision on it about how this can help us with our budget, in terms of what the cost would be to bring in these players – or maybe they would be free, who knows. 'And then finally – and most importantly – there'd be a kind of brand perspective where we would put it to supporters. 'Because this is one of those decisions where we feel supporters should be consulted. And the reason for that is we know that some supporters will not like the potential to be partnered with other clubs. 'So we would present all the facts, we'd present the opinion of Barry, we'd present the opinion of us as a board and we would let the supporters make the final decision.'
Daily Mail
2 hours ago
- Daily Mail
The new and improved Elvis is in the building... and Steven Pressley says he's returned to Scotland with a smaller ego but a determination to succeed at Dundee
Crossing the border en route to Dundee, Steven Pressley had plenty of time to reflect on the various personalities who populated the Scottish game when he made the journey in reverse 12 years ago. One figure in particular gave him cause to wince just a little. He takes comfort from knowing this character is now reformed. 'I am very much a different person to the one who left Scotland with a big ego going down to conquer England,' he claimed. 'I return with a much smaller ego, but with much more knowledge and experience. I think I return a much more authentic guy.' It was the harsh reality of management which took him down a peg or two. Pressley had some notable success at Coventry, but was eventually sacked in 2015. It ended that way at his last posting with Carlisle, too, six years ago. In between, he resigned from his job at Fleetwood. He quickly appreciated that his inaugural posting at Falkirk had been only the first page of his learning in his chosen field. Soon after being appointed Brentford's head of individual development in 2021, his ongoing quest for personnel development took him to Liverpool University where he immersed himself in a course in Strategic Leadership. 'I've just finished my degree,' he revealed. 'One of the things that I most enjoyed about it was self-reflection and looking at how I was as a leader and how I can improve as a leader. 'When I was a player, I was generally a captain. And then I went from that to being a manager almost immediately. 'And you almost, through your title alone, can make people do things. 'Then you go into a job, which I was involved in for four years, where you don't. You have to build relationships. 'You have to manage people in different ways. And it's been brilliant education for me. So, I think I've changed a lot. 'I'm a lot calmer, a lot more controlled, a much smaller ego. 'I think part of that has been that when you're a young manager, you want to take on the world. I still see it with so many young managers. 'Then you have the difficulties, you have the setbacks, you have the failures, you have all of those things. 'And eventually it shapes you and moulds you and changes you. 'I've had a lot of that, a lot of experience, a lot of disappointments, a lot of self-reflection. And I think a lot of growth. 'I think I'm a different character. But I think that that's normal throughout your life.' He's had plenty to celebrate in recent weeks aside from passing his finals. Having decided to leave Brentford for a new challenge, his next destination was Vietnam, the chosen location for his 25th wedding anniversary. He and wife June made it that far only for Dundee's interest to force him to cut the trip short by a week. 'I actually signed the contract of this job on the way to the airport,' he explained. 'I had to pull into a service station to sign it, just prior to getting on the plane. 'And as soon as I signed it, I discussed it with my wife, and I said, 'Look, we're going to have to cut this short'. 'So, I did 11 days. She's been with me 25 years, so she's lived the football life. She understands. 'She'll go away with my daughter for a week. That was kind of the thing to smooth it over.' Some would question his sanity. Pressley is Dundee's 15th different manager this century. As Tony Docherty became the last man to attest to after being sacked for a 10th-place finish, the board have lofty standards and trigger-happy fingers. 'I've just come from a club that has had one manager (Thomas Frank, who has just moved to Spurs) for seven years,' he said. 'My opinion on football, and it's from my experience in working in a certain environment, is that stability is key. Stability is key to growth. 'But to get that stability, the unfortunate aspect of a football manager is that you need to get over certain hurdles and win a certain amount of games to get that opportunity. 'I think we've seen it first-hand in this league last year where you have David Gray at Hibernian. You saw the club kept him there. And then we saw the results of that. 'It's very important that you need to win certain games. But equally, the club has got to show strength and conviction in what they believe. So, it's always the balance.' Pressley doesn't do social media. But nor is he oblivious to the fact that many Dark Blues fans feel underwhelmed at his appointment on the basis that he hasn't taken charge of a game as a manager in six years. He is, however, clearly not in town just to tell people what they want to hear. 'If you are a Dundee supporter looking for a manager with a history of producing titles and winning honours then I'm not your man,' he stated candidly. 'I've not demonstrated that yet. I hope I can demonstrate that moving forward but my career to date doesn't suggest that. 'But certainly, from a development perspective and creating a style of play and the way a team performs, I have demonstrated that over the course.' With wages in England continuing to spiral out of control, the need for him to develop and eventually sell home-grown players is clear. Yet, every football manager still has to deliver results on a Saturday. At a club that's known four top-six finishes and three relegations this century, no one seems quite sure what constitutes success. Pressley knows what he'd like that to look like. 'I think that the club certainly has aspirations for top six,' he said. 'They said that to me during the meeting. 'When you look at the league in general, the gap between the bottom and third place is never enormous. 'So, it is possible to do that. It would be an incredible achievement. It's not beyond us if we do a lot of things right and we get a lot of things right - recruitment being one of them.' He may have changed, but he appreciates that perceptions and rivalries won't have. In a career which saw him wear the colours of Dundee United, Rangers, Hearts, Celtic and Falkirk, he ruffled a few feathers. The great Elvis return tour promises to be eventful. 'Listen, we're never ready for it,' he smiled. 'We pretend we are. It comes with the territory. 'I've got to say that my life down in England, it's been 12 years, has been really enjoyable. Being out of the limelight. Being able to go out and enjoy times with my family without being on the receiving end of any stick. 'It's been great. As I've said, I've lived in football now for 35 years. Unfortunately, I don't know why, I just couldn't get rid of that... 'But I wanted to go back into the front line again. Whether it's right or wrong, we'll only find out in time. But I am genuinely looking forward to it.'
