McLean set for magical milestone
Australian-born Luke McLean will line up against his countrymen after being named in the Italy starting XV for Saturday’s Test against the Wallabies in Turin.
McLean will win his 50th cap for his adopted country at fullback, where he replaces the injured Andrea Masi.
The 26-year-old, eligible for the Azzurri due to his Italian grandmother, made his international debut against the Springboks in Cape Town in 2008 and has since scored 64 Test points (five tries and 13 conversions).
Captain Sergio Parisse and tighthead Martin Castrogiovanni will play in their 99th international while 20-year-old Tommaso Allan is in line to make his Test debut after being included on the bench.
Versatile Tommaso, who can play at flyhalf, centre and fullback, recently raised some eyebrows when he committed himself to Italy after having played for Scotland at Under-17, Under-18 and Under-20 level.
Italy: 15 Luke McLean, 14 Tommaso Benevenuti, 13 Luca Morisi, 12 Alberto Sgarbi, 11 Leonardo Sarto, 10 Alberto Di Bernardo, 9 Edoardo Gori, 8 Sergio Parisse (captain), 7 Robert Barbieri, 6 Alessandro Zanni, 5 Marco Bortolami, 4 Antonio Pavanello, 3 Martin Castrogiovanni, 2 Davide Giazzon, 1 Michele Rizzo.
Replacements: 16 Leonardo Ghiraldini, 17 Matias Aguero, 18 Lorenzo Cittadini, 19 Quintin Geldenhuys, 20 Joshua Furno, 21 Tobias Botes, 22 Tommaso Allan, 23 Tommaso Iannone.
Date: Saturday, November 9
Venue: Stadio Olimpico, Turin
Kick-off: 15.00 (14.00 GMT; 01.00, Sunday, November 10 AEDT)
Referee: Glen Jackson (New Zealand)
Assistant referees: Romain Poite (France), John Lacey (Ireland)
TMO: Graham Hughes (England)
