Campagnaro named in Italy's RWC squad

By Mark Stevens

Exeter Chiefs newcomer Michele Campagnaro has today been named in Italy’s 31-man squad for this year’s Rugby World Cup.

The 22-year-old back, who has joined from Pro12 side Benetton Treviso on a two-year deal, did not feature for Italy in Saturday’s 16-12 defeat to Scotland, but he is expected to play a key role for the Azzurri in this autumn’s tournament.

Mauro Bergamasco will compete in his fifth World Cup for Italy, whilst inspirational No.8 Sergio Parisse captains the side in England.

Marco Bortolami, Robert Barbieri and Michele Visentin are three players to miss out on the squad despite playing against Scotland in the first warm-up match last weekend.

"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," said head coach Jacques Brunel.

"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 Rugby World Cup squad: Matias Aguero, Martin Castrogiovanni, Dario Chistolini, Lorenzo Cittadini, Michele Rizzo, Leonardo Ghiraldini, Davide Giazzon, Andrea Manici, Valerio Bernabo, Joshua Furno, Marco Fuser, Quintin Geldenhuys, Mauro Bergamasco, Francesco Minto, Sergio Parisse (c), Samuela Vunisa, Alessandro Zanni, Edoardo Gori, Guglielmo Palazzani, Marcello Violi, Tommaso Allan, Carlo Canna, Tommaso Benvenuti, Michele Campagnaro, Angelo Esposito, Gonzalo Garcia, Andrea Masi, Luke McLean, Luca Morisi, Leonardo Sarto, Giovanbattista Venditti