The most remarkable thing about Sergio Parisse is not what he can do during a game. What makes him, above all else, the greatest number eight in modern European rugby is his ability to soak up the recurring pain of defeat and come back for more. Year in, year out Italy do it tougher than any other international team and Parisse has long since grown used to life under the hammer.
Just imagine, for a moment, the mental resilience required to reboot yourself, week after gut-wrenching week, from Test match setbacks and still play as well as the 32-year-old Parisse.
Last Saturday's narrow loss to France in Paris was his 83rd in 115 international appearances for the Azzurri. In the Six Nations his strike rate is a meagre nine wins in 51 Tests, with England heading to Rome this Sunday. If ever there was a case of statistics not telling the full story, this is it.
The garlanded archduke of Italian rugby cannot go on forever but we should cherish him while we can. Without their captain, goodness knows where Italian rugby would be. As England's head coach, Eddie Jones, observed this week he would have been an absolute global sensation in a better team. "If he was playing for the All Blacks he'd be rated one of the best in the world," said Jones. More to the point, New Zealand would lose even less frequently than they do already.
Even messing up that last-gasp drop goal opportunity at the Stade de France spoke volumes; how many other forwards could contemplate kicking match-winning drop goals, let alone have the confidence to demand the ball at that particular juncture? He had already landed one in Test rugby - against Scotland in 2009 - so a precedent had been set. His opposite number this week, Billy Vunipola, is also a serious fan of his offloading skills.
“He’s awesome,” says the young Saracen. “He’s been at international level for so long and he’s so comfortable in that shirt. He can afford to throw those cheeky little balls out of the back door. One day maybe I’ll get to that stage but at the moment I’m just trying to stay in the team.”
For England's defence coach, Paul Gustard, the biggest challenge is to predict what Parisse might do next. Will he split England open with the swooping offload, leave their back row stranded off the base, soar above their lineout jumpers or suddenly pop up in midfield? "There are enough examples in his illustrious career that he can pull rabbits out of the hat," said Gustard. "We have to be aware something can happen, something dangerous that is not there with an ordinary forward. He's always looking to do something different. There has to be a heightened awareness whenever he gets the ball."
The pace comes from his father, also called Sergio, who used to play on the wing for the L’Aquila club and shared in their championship win in 1967. Sergio Sr’s job with Alitalia subsequently took him to Argentina where his son was born; Italian was still spoken at home, though, and family holidays were taken back in Italy. By the age of 18 Sergio junior was making his Test debut against the All Blacks in Hamilton: the Azzurri lost 64-10 to set the tone for 14 subsequent bruising years of mind over matter.
England, however, are the only Six Nations team Parisse has yet to beat and Italy fared better against France than most expected given the injury disruption they have wrestled with since the World Cup. With their peerless number eight around they will always be worth watching, regardless of this weekend's outcome.
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