Italy head coach Nick Mallett has included six uncapped players in his training squad ahead of the Azzurri’s RBS Six Nations opener against England at Twickenham on February 7th.
Rovigo winger Andrea Bacchetti and clubmate Simone Favaro, a flanker, join fellow newcomers Giulio Rubini and Gilberto Pavan (both Overmach Cariparma), Benetton Treviso back Tommaso Benvenuti and Casino di Venezia second row Jean Francois Montauriol in the 30-man party.
Martin Castrogiovanni, of Leicester, and Toulon forward Santiago Dellape are also named after returning from injury.
The newcomers will have a four-day training camp to impress Mallett before he names a streamlined 24-man party for the trip to face England at Twickenham on February 7th.
Provisional Italy squad for RBS Six Nations training camp between Jan 25th-29th:
Matias Aguero (Saracens), Andrea Bacchetti (Femi CZ Rovigo), Tommaso Benvenuti (Benetton Treviso), Mauro Bergamasco (Stade Francais), Mirco Bergamasco (Stade Francais), Marco Bortolami (Gloucester), Gonzalo Canale (Clermont Auvergne), Pablo Canavosio (MPS Viadana), Martin Castrogiovanni (Leicester), Carlo Antonio del Fava (Ulster Branch), Santiago Dellape’ (Toulon RC), Simone Favaro (Femi CZ Rovigo), Gonzalo Garcia (Calvisano), Leonardo Ghiraldini (Calvisano), Andrea Marcato (Benetton Treviso), Andrea Masi (Biarritz), Luke McLean (Calvisano), Jean Francois Montauriol (Casino di Venezia), Carlos Nieto (Gloucester), Fabio Ongaro (Saracens), Sergio Parisse (Stade Francais), Gilberto Pavan (Overmach Cariparma), Salvatore Perugini (Stade Toulousain), Matteo Pratichetti (Calvisano), Tommaso Reato (Femi CZ Rovigo), Kaine Robertson (MPS Viadana), Giulio Rubini (Overmach Cariparma), Josh Sole (MPS Viadana), Giulio Toniolatti (Almaviva UR Capitolina), Alessandro Zanni (Calvisano).
