Advertisement League of Ireland Horse Racing TV Listings GAA Fixtures The Video Review Behind the Lines Sportswriters discuss their careers and the work that inspires them. Rugby Weekly Extra Dive into all the news and analysis 3 times a week The Football Family Weekly insights from the week’s big talking points Advertisement More Stories James Ryan, Mack Hansen and Hugo Keenan salute the huge travelling Irish support.Matteo Ciambelli/INPHO Analysismessy Player ratings as Ireland very unspectacularly hold off Italian challenge in Rome Maybe the less said about that overall performance, the better. 5.17pm, 15 Mar 2025 Share options Hugo Keenan — 7: Strong finish for his first-half try and unfortunate not to bag a second after James Lowe’s trapeze act down the left-hand touchline late in the game. A sound performance with a couple of nice attacking cameos when the chances arose — they were just rare. Mack Hansen — 7: Might have been an 8 were it not for the poor missed tackle in the lead-up to Italy’s opening try which Hansen immediately acknowledged himself. That ultimately cost Ireland seven points but Hansen was worth more overall, becoming Ireland’s brightest attacking spark and teeing up Dan Sheehan’s hat-trick score with a wonderful piece of aerial dexterity. Not sure he could have legislated for the wonky bounce that yielded Stephen Varney’s try — appeared at first glance to be good backfield cover by the scrambling Connacht wing. Garry Ringrose — 6: Poor offside penalty on half-hour mark led to three Italian points. Showed some nice attacking glimpses without ever cutting loose. Robbie Henshaw — 6: Impressive poach in seventh minute stymied some early Italian momentum but the game broadly bypassed Henshaw, who made just three carries. James Lowe — 7: Made an excellent intercept on 29 minutes only for James Ryan to spill his subsequent offload. Another similar action with two minutes remaining all but saved Ireland from potential embarrassment. Unfortunate to have been flagged in touch after a gymnastic burst down the left which should have resulted in Keenan’s second try. Several big moments on either side of the ball but nowhere near as dominant a force as would be typical. Jack Crowley — 6: Tidy assist for Keenan’s opening try brought Ireland back on level terms, and had another tee-up for his fullback chalked off due to an earlier knock-on by Doris. Made a nice half-break on a Sexton loop but like virtually every Irish player, could show only glimpses of his class in what was an error-strewn collective effort. Kicked well to the line but 1-from-4 from the tee unacceptable at Test level and could easily have proven costly. Jamison Gibson-Park — 6: Forced things to an uncharacteristic extent in the first hour, coughing up possession needlessly twice. Beautiful pre-assist for Sheehan’s hat-trick score as he identified space and delivered a perfect crossfield kick to Hansen. Struggled to make his typically indelible mark otherwise. Advertisement Andrew Porter — 7: Solid in the scrum and one of the few Irish forwards to really leave an imprint on the breakdown. Dan Sheehan — 8: The hat-trick hero’s scores were all relatively straightforward but Sheehan also had a massive day defensively, making 15 tackles and forcing an off-feet penalty against Italy with a strong jackal attempt on 37 minutes. Spotless in the lineout but probably still in the process of rediscovering his explosive best with ball in hand following his six-month ACL injury. Finlay Bealham — 6: Shouldn’t have taken a third nibble at the line for his disallowed try — it was poor play, albeit Ireland had a penalty advantage. Most notably a defensively sound performance by the Connacht tighthead, who put in several big hits among his nine total tackles in just 46 minutes. James Ryan — 6: Not his most effective day with a couple of frustrating spillages — albeit Doris’ pass for Ryan’s almost-try was a tricky one to gather. Ireland needed him at the breakdown where he did his best work before being replaced shortly after half-time. Tadhg Beirne — 7: Far sharper than he was last week, particularly in defence where he made 13 tackles and forced at least one Italian error. Excellent in the lineout again, winning seven on Irish ball. Jack Conan — 7: Carried hard without making big, statistical inroads. Level with Sheehan on 15 tackles. Won a turnover. A fine effort. Josh van der Flier — 6: Largely quiet except for a brilliant track-back tackle on Tommaso Menoncello which slowed Italy as they seemed destined to add to their opening try. Caelan Doris (captain) — 6: Led Ireland’s tackle stats with 16 but was unusually ineffectual in attack, committing three handling errors and, on first watch at least, making Ryan’s job harder than it needed to be for a bad Irish miss in the left-hand corner. Replacements: Gus McCarthy (Sheehan 70′) — 7: Made five tackles in a frantic final 10 minutes and put a dent in the Italians with an immediate carry off the bench. Jack Boyle (Porter 64′) — 6: Busy on all fronts during his 16-minute cameo but would be a stretch to say he had a material impact on the game. Tadhg Furlong (Bealham 46′) — 6: Wasn’t as busy as Bealham in the loose but made an important contribution to the Irish breakdown as Italy targeted the visitors’ ball in the second half. Joe McCarthy (Ryan 46′) — 6: Spent 35-odd minutes mostly focusing on grunt work much like Ryan before him. Peter O’Mahony (Van der Flier 51′) — 6: Popped up in space on the right edge where he must have briefly fancied a fairytale finish before presumably remembering why he has chosen to bow out. Made some important interventions in the ruck on his final outing in green. Conor Murray (Gibson-Park 66′) — 6: Dawdled over a loose ball which resulted in Italy’s final chance, although there was an Irish player closer to it. But also injected a bit of tempo and control into Ireland’s attack during his own final salvo. Sam Prendergast (Crowley 64′) — 6: Like nearly every Irish player, forced one pass which flew into touch after his own Sexton loop. Otherwise had some nice touches without getting the time to put his own stamp on a messy game. Bundee Aki (Henshaw 55′) — 7:Gave Ireland fleeting moments of midfield impetus that they otherwise lacked against Tommaso Menoncello and Nacho Brex. Bonus rating: Italian TV match director — 10: Tip of the cap to this presumably Italian person who managed to find both Peter O’Mahony’s wife, Jess O’Mahony, and Conor Murray’s wife, Joanna Cooper, in the stand as each player made their final introduction to the field in an Irish jersey. A classy touch on a special day for the O’Mahony and Murray clans. Gavan Casey Viewcomments Send Tip or Correction Embed this post To embed this post, copy the code below on your site Email “Player ratings as Ireland very unspectacularly hold off Italian challenge in Rome”. Recipient's Email Feedback on “Player ratings as Ireland very unspectacularly hold off Italian challenge in Rome”. Your Feedback Your Email (optional) Report a Comment Please select the reason for reporting this comment. Please give full details of the problem with the comment... This is YOUR comments community. Stay civil, stay constructive, stay on topic. Please familiarise yourself with our comments policy before taking part. Leave a Comment Submit a report Please help us understand how this comment violates our community guidelines. Damaging the good reputation of someone, slander, or libel. Racism or Hate speech An attack on an individual or group based on religion, race, gender, or beliefs. Trolling or Off-topic An attempt to derail the discussion. Inappropriate language Profanity, obscenity, vulgarity, or slurs. Advertising, phishing, scamming, bots, or repetitive posts. Please provide additional information Thank you for the feedback Your feedback has been sent to our team for review. Leave a commentcancel Access to the comments facility has been disabled for this user View our policy ⚠️ Duplicate comment Post Comment have your say Or create a free account to join the discussion six nations 2025 FreeIn form Ireland's Jake O'Brien scores second Premier League goal in 3 games 10 mins ago Ex-Man United winger stars as Forest gain upperhand in top 4 race 24 mins ago FreeMatch Report Sheehan's hat-trick saves sluggish Ireland - now they wait on a Six Nations miracle 40 mins ago FreeFrustration Leeds' Premier League hopes suffer setback at QPR Freesuccess Chelsea beat Man City in League Cup final to keep quadruple bid alive Freedecision Leitrim give walkover to Fermanagh due to lack of players Italy v Ireland, Six Nations Italy v Ireland, Six Nations U20 Six Nations Ireland U20s fall to defeat in Italy; France win championship as Wales shock England 'Incredibly special' - Ireland aim to put on a show for 30,000 travelling fans AnalysisBack in the Saddle 22 minutes at 10 during the Six Nations - today brings Crowley's chance to show that was wrong more from us Investigates Daft.ie Property Magazine Allianz Home Magazine The 42 Sports Magazine Money Diaries The Journal TV Journal Media Advertise With Us About FactCheck Our Network FactCheck Knowledge Bank Terms & Legal Notices Terms of Use Cookies & Privacy Advertising Competition more from us TV Listings GAA Fixtures Journal Media Advertise With Us Our Network The Journal FactCheck Knowledge Bank Terms & Legal Notices Terms of Use Cookies & Privacy Advertising Competition © 2025 Journal Media Ltd Terms of Use Cookies & Privacy Advertising Competition Switch to Desktop Switch to Mobile The 42 supports the work of the Press Council of Ireland and the Office of the Press Ombudsman, and our staff operate within the Code of Practice. You can obtain a copy of the Code, or contact the Council, at https://www.presscouncil.ie, PH: (01) 6489130, Lo-Call 1800 208 080 or email: mailto:info@presscouncil.ie Report an error, omission or problem: Your Email (optional) Create Email Alert Create an email alert based on the current article Email Address One email every morning As soon as new articles come online Sign in or create a free account To continue reading create a free account Or sign into an existing account