De Rossi To Lead Italy

In the absence of injured Alessandro Troncon, 21 year old Andrea De Rossi will captain Italy against
England in their opening Royal Bank Of Scotland Six Nations match

21 year old Andrea De Rossi will captain Italy against
world champions England in their opening Royal Bank Of Scotland Six Nations match on February 15th.
Azzurri coach John Kirwan has handed the 21-year-old Calvisano
flanker the
skipper’s armband as regular captain is still
recovering
from a knee injury.

De Rossi said it was a great honour to lead his country, but fully
understood that it was only on a temporary basis.
“Troncon is the captain and when he’s fit he’ll be back in
charge, but I’m
overjoyed to be given the responsibility,” he said.

“It’s a great honour for me and I feel ready for the
challenge. It’s a very
proud moment for me”

Former New Zealand All Black Kirwan, who scored 34 tries in 63
Test
matches, said he had no doubts that De Rossi was up to the task.
“Unfortunately Troncon is injured and I hope to have him back
as quickly as
possible, but I have total confidence in Andrea and believe he can
take this
team forward,” Kirwan said.

Born in Genoa, De Rossi began his career with Rugby Livorno and
went on to
represent Italy at junior and under-21 level.
He made his international debut against Uruguay in 1999 and has
been a
regular in the team ever since.

De Rossi has captained Italy before in 2002 against a New Zealand
Divisional XV while the Azzurri were on tour.