What is it about modern rugby centre combinations and the race to smash their names together to form a hipster catch-all moniker? Scotland’s Sione Tuipulotu and Huw Jones are collectively known as “Huwipulotu” and on Saturday Ireland will face the Italian midfield axis “Brexoncello”, made up of Juan Ignacio Brex and Tommaso Menoncello.
Maybe it’s time for Ireland to follow suit, “Henrose”, “Bunshaw”, or perhaps a more edgy “Dee-ring”, anyone? Not sure, though, that two of Robbie Henshaw, Bundee Aki or Garry Ringrose are going to pose topless with a rehomed dog as the Italian pair did for Benetton’s charity calendar this year.
Leaving aside the labelling, whoever is chosen for the Irish midfield on Saturday is going to face a true test of not just tackling but defending. Brex (32) and Menoncello (22) might be separated by a decade in age but they have quickly developed an innate understanding of each other’s games both at club level, in Treviso, and with the national team.
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Since Menoncello recovered from a shoulder injury that caused him to miss the 2023 World Cup, they have formed the centre partnership in 14 of Italy’s last 15 Tests. A recent illustration of their rugby telepathy was demonstrated when Brex put Menoncello away for his try against France, one of two that the latter has scored in this season’s Six Nations.
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Born in Buenos Aires, Brex holds dual citizenship and qualifies to play for his adopted homeland thanks to his Italian-born grandfather. He learned his rugby at the local San Cirano club, played for Argentina under-20, Argentina Sevens and an Argentina XV before moving to Italy, where he joined Viadana for a season (2016-2017).
Benetton recruited him that summer and he’s been in Treviso for nearly eight years. Menoncello was an 18-year-old star in the making when “Nacho” Brex began supervising his development in a rugby context. “Since I arrived at Benetton at the top level, he was always the first to teach me,” Menoncello said.
“To now be feared by other teams as a partnership makes me very proud and happy. Obviously, having him at both club and international level creates an even stronger link, which we can bring into Six Nations and Italy matches.
“As well as helping me, this connection with Nacho helps the whole team, because we are a bit unpredictable together and we know each other very well. We understand each other just with a glance.”
Brex returns the compliment: “Tommaso is definitely a beast. Playing alongside him makes life a lot easier. It is easy to play alongside him, as he is always smiling. Even if it’s a bad pass that he receives, he can make something happen with it. He is a star, and it is great playing alongside him because we bring the best out of each other.”
Menoncello grew up in the small town of Quinto and initially played football – there are one or two stories about him playing against Juventus Youths – but the local club went bang after three years. When his father arrived home with a flyer for a rugby camp in Paese, the youngster went along and has never looked back.
His precocious talent saw him progress quickly. He was 18 when he first played under-20 international rugby and went on to become the youngest player to score a try in the Six Nations – he was only 19 when he touched down after fielding a Paolo Garbisi crosskick at a sodden Stade de France in 2021.
Last season Menoncello was voted Six Nations player of the tournament as Italy won two matches and drew with France. He’s big, quick, physical and benefits massively from Brex’s vision, range of passing and footwork that creates space.
Despite the fact that the Italians have struggled this season, statistically speaking, Menoncello is still a strong performer. He has scored two tries, is in the top two for metres carried and gained in his team, is the Italian player with the most tackles (45), has the most breakdown steals (three) of any back in the tournament, and along with Brex leads his team’s line-breaks with two apiece.
One area that Ireland will have noted and will target is the Italian defence. Brex has missed 12 tackles, fullback Ange Capuozzo (nine) and wing Monty Ioane (eight).
Brex admitted: “Ireland is always a very strong team, despite the last defeat, so we are first of all studying the solutions to fix our defence, because that is where we have to start to improve.
“We are not hiding, we have taken 120 points in two games, so we have to fix the defence because without that you not only take points, but you also don’t have quality possessions to attack with. In attack we know that there are points where we can cause them problems.”
