Azzurri.

Joe Schmidt named his Ireland squad yesterday evening for the opening two rounds of the 2018 NatWest Six Nations, with Leinster prodigy Jordan Larmour the only uncapped player named in the squad.

The exciting young Leinster talent likely won’t make his debut against France in Paris, with Schmidt set to go with experience, but he might just start as part of an exciting line-up to take on Italy the following week at the Aviva.

The Italian game has always traditionally been a game where some players can be rested, especially considering it’s a home this year. The Italians however, are a much better side now under Conor O’Shea, and with bonus-points now on offer, Schmidt will still look to field some of his top stars.

We’ve decided to include the likes of Iain Henderson, CJ Stander, Keith Earls and Robbie Henshaw in our starting line-up for the Italian game, even though they will all likely start the week previous against France. Schmidt will need to go with a blend of experience an inexperience as he did last year.

Possible Ireland team to take on Italy.

15. Andrew Conway
14. Keith Earls
13. Chris Farrell
12. Robbie Henshaw
11. Jordan Larmour
10. Joey Carbery/Ian Keatley
9. Luke McGrath

1. Cian Healy
2. Sean Cronin
3. John Ryan
4. James Ryan
5. Iain Henderson
6. CJ Stander
7. Dan Leavy
8. Jack Conan

Replacements:
16. Rob Herring
17. Dave Kilcoyne
18. Andrew Porter
19. Quinn Roux
20. Jordi Murphy
21. Kieran Marmion
22. Joey Carbery/Ian Keatley
23. Rory Scannell