Marco Bortolami out of Italy World Cup squad
Monday 24 August 2015 17:33, UK
Italy's most capped player, Marco Bortolami, has been left out of the 31-man squad for next month’s Rugby World Cup.
Bortolami has won 112 caps for his country, but misses out along with Robert Barbieri and Michele Visentin. All three featured in Italy's first World Cup warm-up game against Scotland in Turin.
There is a place though for Mauro Bergamasco, who will play in his fifth World Cup. His experience will be invaluable as head coach Jacques Brunel has chosen 16 players never to feature at a World Cup.
Sergio Parisse has been named Italy captain ahead of the tournament, which begins on September 18.
"I want to thank all the players for their great commitment and attachment to the national team demonstrated in these two months of hard work," Brunel said.
"I am confident that the same spirit will continue to shine in this last stage of the journey towards the World Cup and will be at the peak during the event.
"Our goal, over the years, has always been to find the right balance for this team. Our ambition is to qualify for the quarter-finals, getting out of the group stage for the first time in the history of Italian rugby, and we have focused our energy and made our decisions based on reaching that goal."
Italy's opening World Cup game is against Pool D opponents France at Twickenham on September 19, before they face Canada, Ireland and Romania.
Italy 31-man World Cup squad:
Forwards: Matias Aguero, Martin Castrogiovanni, Dario Chistolini, Lorenzo Cittadini, Michele Rizzo, Leonardo Ghiraldini, Davide Giazzon, Andrea Manici, Valerio Barnabo, Joshua Furno, Marco Fuser, Quintin Geldenhuys, Mauro Bergamasco, Francesco Minto, Sergio Parisse (captain), Samuela Vunisa, Alessandro Zanni.
Backs: Carlo Canna, Edoardo Gori, Guglielmo Palazzani, Marcello Violi, Tommaso Allan, Tommaso Benvenuti, Michele Campagnaro, Angelo Esposito, Gonzalo Garcia, Andrea Masi, Luke McLean, Luca Morisi, Leonardo Sarto, Giovanbattista Venditti.
