MATCH REPORT | Italy U18 22-28 Scotland U18

Scotland U18 claimed a 28-22 victory over Italy U18 in the U18 International Series at Parc y Scarlets on Wednesday afternoon to record their first win of the tournament. The Scots bagged two tries before half-time to go in at the break ahead by four points before impressing in the second-half to see out a physical Italian side.Scotland Head Coach, Ally Donaldson, said: “We produced a very satisfying performance against a strong and mature Italian team. The squad played some good attacking rugby and created a lot of chances and also defended well for long periods.”Scotland took an early lead in the 5th minute with right wing Jack Blain crossing and out-half Ross Thompson adding the extras to convert possession into points.Scotland continued to gain momentum in the Italian 22 with a series of penalties keeping pressure on the opposition, while a yellow card for front-row Dan York sent the Scots down to 14 minutes later. The resulting penalty provided Italy with the position from which to attack and with Scotland’s defence under strain, the Italians drew level with a converted penalty try.In the 20th minute, Italy extended their lead over Scotland with a successful penalty positioned inside the 22 with the swing of momentum starting to go in favour of the Italians.The closing minutes of the first-half resulted in Scotland claiming their second score of the match, with the forwards making the hard yards before left wing Andrew McLean raced over and Thompson converted.Half-time: Italy U18 10-14 Scotland U18After the interval, Italy took an early and narrow lead from the kick-off with a try from a driving line-out before missing the conversion.Scotland then responded with Blain going over for his second try of the match and with Thompson converting, Donaldson’s side re-claimed the lead.Italy fell to 14 after a yellow card was presented while Scotland continued to pressurise the defence with effective forward and back play before making several positional changes in the closing stages.Replacement Gus Warr then crossed for Scotland’s third try of the match as Thompson sailed the ball through the uprights to convert the score and record a fine kicking display.Italy managed to respond in the dying moments with a converted try before Scotland hung on to see out victory in an entertaining match between the two sides.The squad will now prepare for their final match of the U18 International Series against England U18 on Sunday (kick-off 2.30pm).Full-time: Italy U18 22-28 Scotland U18Scotland U18: Jon Searle; Jack Blain, Cameron Symes, Rory McMichael, Andrew McLean; Ross Thompson, Roan Frostwick; Will Owen, Finlay Scott, Dan York, Cameron Henderson, Oliver Cattell, Jack Hutchison, Connor Boyle, Drew Davison. Replacements: Calum Renwick, Andrew Nimmo, Murphy Walker, Marshal Sykes, Rory Darge, Gus Warr, Matt Davidson, Grant Hughes, Jack McLean, Jacob Lineen, James McCaig. U18 International Series FixturesSunday 16 April at CCB Centre for Sporting Excellence, Ystrad Mynach:- Italy v Canada (12 noon)- Scotland v England (2.30pm)- Wales v Ireland (4.15pm) Image: gerry/gpfoto.ie