Italy call in reinforcements to tame Boks
The Azzurri boss called up uncapped hooker Giampietro Ribaldi from Zebre Parma. He joins the squad this week and is expected to train immediately.
The 6-foot-one, hard-running hooker has been knocking on the door of the Italian national team since 2021, where he’s made appearances for Italy ‘A’ and Emerging Italy. He’s backed up those performances with a strong 2024/2025 season in the Vodacom United Rugby Championship.
Italy head into the clash off the back of a 42-24 loss to South Africa at Loftus Versfeld, following a dominant opening win against Namibia in Windhoek.
Although Quesada has lauded his team’s resilience and passion, he’s acutely aware of the challenge the Boks will bring on Saturday.
“We know their level will rise significantly. They’re not happy with this game and will want to improve. But we also have room to grow and will take confidence from this,” said Quesada following the Loftus showdown.
