Roman Reload: Italy Rings the Changes to Tackle the Mighty Boks

 

Italy coach Gonzalo Quesada made radical alterations to his side for the Test against South Africa on Saturday, July 5, at Pretoria's Loftus Versfeld Stadium. Italy, who rested their senior players in their recent Six Nations tournament and thrashed Namibia very convincingly, will employ a new team with Niccolò Cannone as the new captain.

 

Key Highlights:

 

Seven Back Row Shifts: No. 8 Lorenzo Cannone and blindside flanker Alessandro Izekor replace Ross Vintcent and Sebastian Negri in the back row. Andrea Zambonin replaces the injured Riccardo Favretto with a knee injury in the second row.

 

Backline Champs: Paolo Odogwu is replaced by Louis Lynagh on the right wing with Simone Gesi and Jacopo Trulla on the full-backs. Marco Zanon comes into the inside centre with Tommaso Menoncello.

 

Front Row Update: Giacomo Nicotera is replaced at hooker by Tommaso Di Bartolomeo, Simone Ferrari and Danilo Fischetti playing on the front row.

 

Captaincy Shift: Niccolò Cannone takes over captaincy duties from hooker Giacomo Nicotera, who had captained the side in the Namibia match.

 

Springboks Team: South Africa's team has Jesse Kriel as captain in absence of Siya Kolisi, and Damian Willemse comes in to play full-back while Vincent Tshituka is awarded a Test debut.

 

Prospects: Italy's new-look team will seek to capitalize on momentum and push the world champions on their home soil. The Springboks, with a mix of old guard legends and fresh faces, will seek to continue dominance in this mid-year international match.

 

Match Details:

 

•⁠  ⁠Date: Saturday, 5 July 2025

 

•⁠  ⁠Venue: Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria

 

•⁠  ⁠Kick-off: 17:10 (local time)

 

•⁠  ⁠Referee: Hollie Davidson (SRU)

 

Sources: Planet Rugby