Rugby, Six Nations finished for Ange Capuozzo

Six Nations finished for Ange Capuozzo, now it’s official. As we knew thanks to French sources the day after the match in Rome against Ireland, the blue full-back suffered a scapula injury which unfortunately does not allow for a quick recovery. No Wales next Saturday, therefore, and no trip to Edinburgh for the closing of the Tournament on March 18 for the player who has contributed the most to Kieran Crowley’s fifteen-year leap in quality over the past year. The Fir had nevertheless included him among the squad, but today he had to surrender to the evidence. “In the light of the persistence of pain symptoms in the left shoulder – reads the federal press release – and with the intention of allowing the player to continue the rehabilitation process in complete tranquility and with the times necessary for a full functional recovery, the technical staff and the doctor of Italy have agreed with the athlete not to proceed with his reinstatement in the team group in view of the last two days of the Guinness Six Nations».

Toulouse, the French club he plays for, plans to recover him for the round of 16 of the Champions Cup in April, Crowley will instead have to plan for a rearrangement of the backlog for Saturday’s match, where the pawns to move are those of Padovani, Bruno and Allan. A real shame because the match with Wales, in great crisis and still 0 points behind Italy, and beaten in Cardiff 12 months ago thanks to an invention by Capuozzo, is crucial for the Azzurri. Not only to avoid yet another wooden spoon but to confirm progress in terms of game solidity and find the necessary confidence to show up in Edinburgh in two weekends with the right mentality.