As the weekend approaches, rugby enthusiasts are eagerly looking forward to the mid-year international matches, where some thrilling line-ups and players are set to return to the field. Various teams, including the All Blacks, Springboks, England, and others, have disclosed their squads for the upcoming encounters. Let’s delve into a detailed analysis of the teams preparing to battle it out on Saturday.
A notable highlight of the weekend will be the return of Ange Capuozzo, a renowned outside back, to the Italian team as they prepare to face Tonga. Capuozzo, with an impressive playing career, will assume the role of full-back for Italy in Nuku’alofa. Additionally, Scotland’s Jamie Ritchie is poised to make his 50th appearance for his country in their match against the USA in Washington DC, adding further excitement to the upcoming games.
The anticipated line-ups for the USA and Scotland are as follows:
USA:
(To be confirmed)
Scotland:
15 Kyle Rowe, 14 Kyle Steyn, 13 Huw Jones, 12 Sione Tuipulotu (cc), 11 Duhan van der Merwe, 10 Adam Hastings, 9 George Horne, 8 Matt Fagerson, 7 Rory Darge (cc), 6 Jamie Ritchie, 5 Scott Cummings, 4 Alex Craig, 3 Murphy Walker, 2 Ewan Ashman, 1 Pierre Schoeman
Replacements:
16 Robbie Smith, 17 Rory Sutherland, 18 Elliot Millar Mills, 19 Max Williamson, 20 Luke Crosbie, 21 Jamie Dobie, 22 Ross Thompson, 23 Matt Currie
For the Tonga and Italy match, the line-ups will be as follows:
Tonga:
(To be confirmed)
Italy:
15 Ange Capuozzo, 14 Jacopo Trulla, 13 Juan Ignacio Brex, 12 Tommaso Menoncello, 11 Monty Ioane, 10 Paolo Garbisi, 9 Martin Page-Relo, 8 Lorenzo Cannone, 7 Michele Lamaro (c), 6 Manuel Zuliani, 5 Federico Ruzza, 4 Edoardo Iachizzi, 3 Marco Riccioni, 2 Giacomo Nicotera, 1 Danilo Fischetti
Replacements:
16 Gianmarco Lucchesi, 17 Mirco Spagnolo, 18 Simone Ferrari, 19 Niccolò Cannone, 20 Andrea Zambonin, 21 Alessandro Garbisi, 22 Leonardo Marin, 23 Ross Vintcent
The much-anticipated clash between New Zealand and England will include the following line-ups:
New Zealand:
15 Stephen Perofeta, 14 Sevu Reece, 13 Rieko Ioane, 12 Jordie Barrett, 11 Mark Tele’a, 10 Damian McKenzie, 9 Finlay Christie, 8 Ardie Savea, 7 Dalton Papali’i, 6 Samipeni Finau, 5 Patrick Tuipulotu, 4 Scott Barrett (c), 3 Tyrel Lomax, 2 Codie Taylor, 1 Ethan de Groot
Replacements:
16 Asafo Aumua, 17 Ofa Tu’ungafasi, 18 Fletcher Newell, 19 Tupou Vaa’i, 20 Luke Jacobson, 21 Cortez Ratima, 22 Anton Lienert-Brown, 23 Beauden Barrett
England:
15 George Furbank, 14 Immanuel Feyi-Waboso, 13 Henry Slade, 12 Ollie Lawrence, 11 Tommy Freeman, 10 Marcus Smith, 9 Alex Mitchell, 8 Ben Earl, 7 Sam Underhill, 6 Chandler Cunningham-South, 5 George Martin, 4 Maro Itoje, 3 Will Stuart, 2 Jamie George, 1 Fin Baxter
Replacements:
16 Theo Dan, 17 Bevan Rodd, 18 Dan Cole, 19 Alex Coles, 20 Tom Curry, 21 Ben Spencer, 22 Fin Smith, 23 Ollie Sleightholme
Additional matches include Australia vs. Wales, South Africa vs. Ireland, Argentina vs. France, Japan vs. Georgia, and Samoa vs. Spain. The upcoming weekend promises to be a thrilling spectacle for rugby aficionados, and the anticipation to witness these teams in action is palpable.
As the matches draw nearer, excitement levels continue to escalate, with fans eagerly anticipating the outcomes of these highly-awaited encounters. It is evident that the teams are poised to give their utmost, and we can expect a weekend brimming with exceptional performances and competitive rugby.
We encourage you to stay tuned for further updates and embrace the prospect of an enthralling weekend of international rugby!