Louis Lynagh to receive first Italy cap against Scotland
By Harry McLusky
Louis Lynagh OH (2019) has been handed his first start for Italy ahead of this weekend’s Six Nations fixture against Scotland.
Despite being called up by Eddie Jones for a training camp with the England national team in 2021, the 23-year-old switched his allegiance earlier this year and was called up to Italy’s squad in February.
The introduction of Lynagh is one of three changes made by head coach, Gonzalo Quesada, with Simone Ferrari and Sebastian Negri returning to the side. Gli Azzurri will be looking to pick up where they left off, having come painstakingly close to securing a famous victory over France two weeks ago.
Italy’s last victory against Scotland came in 2015, after a last-minute penalty try gave them a dramatic 22-19 win at Murrayfield. Since then, Scotland have won all thirteen clashes between the two sides, but Italy’s victories over Wales and Australia in 2022 show promising signs of a miracle win.
Lynagh moved to England from Italy at the age of four, joining the Harlequins Academy at the age of thirteen. Having racked up 58 appearances for the Quins, he will move to Italian side, Benetton Treviso, at the end of this season, marking the end of his ten-year stay at the club.
The son of Wallaby great, Michael Lynagh, Louis captained Hampton’s 1st XV in the 2018-19 season. For Harlequins, Lynagh made his mark on the rugby world in the 2021 Premiership Final, in which his two late tries gained a historic 38-40 victory over Exeter Chiefs.
Saturday’s clash will see him face up against some of the biggest names in rugby, with Lynagh directly lining up against Duhan Van der Merwe, whose hat-trick overwhelmed England’s defensive line earlier in the tournament.
