Italy v Ireland in focus: Irish attempt to get Six Nations back on track

Ireland head coach Joe Schmidt (second from left) watches on during Friday's captain's run in Rome

Ireland will attempt to get their Six Nations campaign back on track when they face Italy at Stadio Olimpico on Saturday (kick-off 2.25pm).

Joe Schmidt's side were punished for a poor first-half display at Murrayfield last weekend and realistically they need a bonus-point win in Rome to stay in title contention.

Italy have had just six days to recover from their home loss to Wales, where yet again they performed admirably for the guts of an hour only to fade badly in the final quarter.

The Azzurri's last Test victory at Stadio Olimpico came against Saturday's opponents in 2013. With Johnny Sexton again absent through injury, can Italy cause another shock or will Ireland return to winning ways? We examine five key talking points…

Captaincy concerns

Ireland remain without the injured Johnny Sexton for their trip to Rome and they could also be minus the services of their captain for the must-win clash.

Ireland captain Rory Best is a late doubt

Rory Best missed Ireland's captain's run on Friday due to a stomach bug, instead remaining at the hotel in an attempt to beat his illness.

Ireland's lineout faltered in Scotland but the return of Donnacha Ryan to the second row was expected to steady the ship. Should Best miss out, and with Sean Cronin already ruled out of the entire tournament, Ryan's experience will be even more important when combining with Munster team-mate Niall Scannell, who is line to win his first cap.

Vice captain Jamie Heaslip would take the armband in Best's absence, but Ireland are clearly giving 34-year-old Best every chance of a recovery.

Tries and tempo

Ireland scored nine tries in a 58-15 win over Italy on the final day of last year's Championship

Last weekend Ireland made history by becoming the first team in the Six Nations to pick up a losing bonus point. Now they must claim the tournament's first-ever try bonus point to keep their fading title hopes alive.

Ireland's recent record in Rome is not good, however. They have scored three tries on their last three visits, which includes a 22-15 loss on the final day of the 2013 Six Nations, when Brian O'Driscoll was sin-binned for stamping and a spate of injuries in the backline resulted in Peter O'Mahony playing on the wing for 50 minutes.

Joe Schmidt has made two changes to his starting XV but arguably the most interesting selection was the inclusion of Craig Gilroy among the replacements. Should Italy maintain their tradition of running out of gas on the hour mark, the Ulster wing's electric pace could prove crucial in Ireland's pursuit of four tries.

Time to park the bus

Ireland defence coach Andy Farrell has come in for criticism after they shipped three tries for the fifth successive Test

Ireland's team bus was 15 minutes late arriving at Murrayfield last weekend. The issue has been continually raised all week, long after the actual delay's impact had dissipated.

Ireland boss Joe Schmidt admitted his players were anxious at having to rush through their warm-up and has challenged his players to react far more quickly to unforeseen setbacks.

The disruption over Best's illness qualifies as an immediate test. The boss will be expecting a more measured reaction this weekend.

Parisse seeks some satisfaction

Sergio Parisse admits Italy will need another miracle rivalling November's South Africa triumph to topple Ireland

Sergio Parisse has been passed fit for Saturday's fixture and the skipper spent part of Italy's captain's run listening to the Rolling Stones' "Satisfaction".

The Azzurri's finest-ever player has spent his entire Test career chasing that elusive emotion, but now harbours new hope that Conor O'Shea can help Italy realise the promise that has lied so latent for so long.

Parisse's win record stands at 27 per cent for his 122 caps, as opposed to 57 per cent for his Ireland counterpart Rory Best from his 101 Test appearances, and at the age of 33 it would be all too easy for him to start winding down, but the talismanic No 8 has other ideas.

Parisse has enjoyed working with Conor O'Shea

"I find in Conor a coach who has the same vision as me," said Parisse. "And it's an honour for me to work with him.

"When he arrived in Italy it was very good news from my personal point of view.

"I don't know how long I will keep playing, maybe one, two, three years. While I'm fit and my performances are good and I'm mentally fresh though, I definitely want to keep playing.

"Physically I'm feeling good but you never know how long it will be. As soon as I'm not fit enough and my performance is poor, I think I'll automatically be out of the team."

The O'Shea factor

Conor O'Shea feels Italy suffer from the perception of referees

Former Ireland full-back O'Shea is preparing to coach a Test team against his homeland for the first time.

O'Shea has insisted he will treat this clash like any other but will doubtless struggle to contain his emotions.

The former Harlequins director of rugby's mammoth Italian task is not just to forge a Test side that can move past 11 last-place finishes in 17 Six Nations tournaments - but also to revamp internal structures at every level.

England scrum-half Danny Care, who worked under O'Shea at Quins, believes the Italy job is 'tailor-made' for the Irishman and says the 46-year-old's loyalty always resonates with his players.

Danny Care says Harlequins former chief Conor O'Shea was like a 'second dad' to many of the young players

"He'll be doing so much more than just looking after the Test team," said Care. "He'll be going round all the clubs in Italy, inspiring kids and players from all ages, girls, boys, to go out there and play rugby.

"He's got that infectious optimism and confidence. He's the most positive person I've ever met and he's a great guy for them.

"I was absolutely chuffed to bits that he got that big victory over South Africa in the autumn, which was great. And I'm sure there will be a few more of them coming in the next few years."

Italy: 15 Edoardo Padovani; 14 Angelo Esposito, 13 Tommaso Benvenuti, 12 Luke McLean, 11 Giovanbattista Venditti; 10 Carlo Canna, 9 Edoardo Gori; 1 Andrea Lovotti. 2 Leonardo Ghiraldini, 3 Lorenzo Cittadini, 4 Marco Fuser; 5 Dries Van Schalkwyk, 6 Maxime MBanda'; 7 Simone Favaro, 8 Sergio Parisse (c).

Replacements: 16 Ornel Gega, 17 Sami Panico, 18 Dario Chistolini, 19 George Biagi, 20 Abraham Steyn, 21 Giorgio Bronzini, 22 Tommaso Allan, 23 Michele Campagnaro.

Ireland: 15 Rob Kearney, 14 Keith Earls, 13 Garry Ringrose, 12 Robbie Henshaw, 11 Simon Zebo, 10 Paddy Jackson, 9 Conor Murray; 1 Cian Healy, 2 Rory Best (c), 3 Tadhg Furlong, 4 Donnacha Ryan, 5 Devin Toner, 6 CJ Stander, 7 Sean O'Brien, 8 Jamie Heaslip.

Replacements: 16 Niall Scannell, 17 Jack McGrath, 18 John Ryan, 19 Ultan Dillane, 20 Josh van der Flier, 21 Kieran Marmion, 22 Ian Keatley, 23 Craig Gilroy.