RUGBY MATTERS
A weekly look at the game’s other talking points
BRENDAN GALLAGHER

I have a half-baked theory that the comparative health and success of the Italian national rugby team very much depends on whether they have a set of brothers in their ranks. It seems a decent weather guide if nothing else.
Just recently Italy have picked up encouragingly and, hey presto, we have the muscular Cannone brothers, Niccolò and Lorenzo, who are beginning to provide the grunt that many Azzurri packs have lacked in recent years.
Neither is a giant by Test standards, but both make a hefty impact. At ...