Ross Vintcent earns Italy call up

Exeter Chiefs No 8 Ross Vintcent has been picked by new coach Gonzalo Quesada to Italy’s Guinness Six Nations squad.

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The Bishops’ old boy is joined by four other uncapped players in the group. 

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ROSS VINTCENT: ITALY CALL UP SOUTH AFRICAN-BORN NO 8

Originally from Johannesburg, the 21-year-old loose forward for the Chiefs attended the Italian Rugby Federation Academy before moving to Exeter in 2022. 

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He made his professional debut for Zebre before moving to the Gallagher Premiership.

Together with fellow back row player Alessandro Izekor and props Matteo Nocera, Luca Rizzoli, and Mirco Spagnolo, the dynamic back row is one of five uncapped players in the Azzurri’s pack.

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“We will have the opportunity to work for the first time, even for just 3 days, with the entire group. In the first part of January the focus was on the new working methodology, on field trips and meeting points.

“Now we will go into the basics of our game and the attack and defense structures. We won’t have much time available and we will try to concentrate the work as much as possible. The staff worked very well and during this period there was constant discussion to best transfer all the information to the athletes” Gonzalo Quesada said according to Rugby Pass.

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Italy 34-player squad

Props

Pietro CECCARELLI (Perpignan, 31 caps

Danilo FISCHETTI (Zebre Parma, 36 caps)

Matteo NOCERA (Zebre Parma, uncapped)

Luca RIZZOLI (Zebre Parma, uncapped)

Mirco SPAGNOLO (Benetton Rugby, uncapped)

Giosuè ZILOCCHI (Benetton Rugby, 16 caps)

Hookers

Gianmarco LUCCHESI (Benetton Rugby, 17 caps)

Marco MANFREDI (Zebre Parma, 3 caps)

Giacomo NICOTERA (Benetton Rugby, 18 caps)

Second rows

Niccolò CANNONE (Benetton Rugby, 36 caps)

Edoardo IACHIZZI (Benetton Rugby, 6 caps)

Federico RUZZA (Benetton Rugby, 49 caps)

Andrea ZAMBONIN (Zebre Parma, 3 caps)

Back rows

Lorenzo CANNONE (Benetton Rugby, 16 caps)

Riccardo FAVRETTO (Benetton Rugby, 1 cap)

Alessandro IZEKOR (Benetton Rugby, uncapped)

Michele LAMARO (Benetton Rugby, 33 caps)

Sebastian NEGRI (Benetton Rugby, 52 caps)

Ross VINTCENT (Exeter, uncapped)

Manuel ZULIANI (Benetton Rugby, 17 caps)

Scrum-halves

Alessandro GARBISI (Benetton Rugby, 7 caps)

Martin PAGE-RELO (Lione, 4 caps)

Stephen VARNEY (Gloucester, 24 caps)

Fly-halves

Tommaso ALLAN (Perpignan, 79 caps)

Paolo GARBISI (Montpellier, 31 caps)

Centres

Juan Ignacio BREX (Benetton Rugby, 30 caps)

Tommaso MENONCELLO (Benetton Rugby, 12 caps)

Federico MORI (Bayonne, 13 caps)

Marco ZANON (Benetton Rugby, 16 caps)

Outside backs

Pierre BRUNO (Zebre Parma, 15 caps)

Ange CAPUOZZO (Stade Toulousain, 16 caps)

Monty IOANE (Lione 25 caps)

Simone GESI (Zebre Parma, 1 cap)

Lorenzo PANI (Zebre Parma, 5 caps)