LONG READ Lamb to the slaughter? Italy aim to 'get stuck into' All Blacks

If Dino Lamb and his Italy team-mates have learned one lesson so far this autumn, it is that you must take your chances when they come.

The versatile Harlequins forward seized his opportunity last Saturday, putting in a player-of-the-match performance against Georgia after getting the chance to start in the absence of injured lock Federico Ruzza.

In Genoa, Lamb raised his hand for selection against the All Blacks with the force and intention of a skyward stretch at lineout time, and it was little surprise to see his name among the starters when the team was announced on Thursday afternoon.

However, while Lamb made the most of his first Italy start of 2024 following a long and frustrating injury absence, his team struggled to execute in key moments.

Argentina gave the Azzurri a lesson in clinical finishing when they racked up a record 50-18 scoreline in Udine on the opening weekend. A week later, Italy’s biggest-ever Test comeback was required when they clawed back an 11-point deficit to edge Georgia 20-17 in a game plagued by repeated Italian failures to turn possession and territory into points.

An underwhelmed response from the media and public can be attributed to Italy pushing their standards higher than ever in a hugely encouraging year – something Lamb could sense was coming when the Warwickshire-born former England Under-20s forward decided to represent his father’s homeland last summer ahead of the World Cup.

Before, there was that David vs Goliath thing, but now we expect more

“I’ve come across because I feel I can contribute to the Italian side. I want them to push forward and get the best out of what Italian rugby is, and go on and win against these big teams,” Lamb tells RugbyPass.

“Before, there was that David vs Goliath thing, but now we expect more.”

Gonzalo Quesada’s first year in charge of Italy has been a triumph, beating Scotland and Wales and drawing with France in the Six Nations before summer tour wins over Japan and Tonga continued the sense of progress despite a slip-up in Samoa – all of which Lamb missed through injury.

On the back of that run, Italy’s heavier-than-expected defeat by Argentina and narrower-than-expected win over Georgia fell below the raised bar of expectation for the world’s number 10-ranked team.

“There is that expectation around Italian rugby to be at a certain level now. When we face the likes of Georgia you expect us to get a few more points on the board. But we left a few points out there and didn’t quite execute,” Lamb adds.

“It was almost the same with the Argentina game. Yes, the scoreboard shows that they got away massively, especially at the end of the game. But we had some good opportunities. It’s a pass going to floor, a pick-up from Argentina and next thing you know they are down the other side of the pitch scoring.

“There is expectation from the Six Nations, but in the last two games our own errors have brought the opposition on more than we would have liked.

“Going forward, it’s how do we improve that accuracy, staying close as a group and when errors do happen, how do we react as a group? There are a few positives there, but looking from the outside in, the scorelines haven’t been great.”

I thought I was getting better at my rugby, so I was weighing up both England and Italy. The opportunity came where it could almost go either way.

Lamb arrived on the international scene in 2023, earning his first Italy call-up for the World Cup warm-up games before earning a place in Kieran Crowley’s tournament squad, where he featured in three pool games and scored a try against Namibia.

England born and bred, Lamb was part of the English Under-20 side that reached the World Championship final in 2017, but was eligible for the Azzurri due to his Turin-born father.

Lamb’s father left Italy aged seven to move to England and the Italian language, much to Dino’s frustration, was rarely spoken at home during his childhood. He now says he has picked up the language “more in a rugby lineout format than everyday conversation.”

But from the moment Lamb earned his first pro contract with Harlequins in 2016, the possibility of representing Italy was in the air, due to his club boss Conor O’Shea spotting his potential and being aware of his eligibility before departing Quins to lead Italy from 2016 to 2019.

Lamb recalls O’Shea reaching out to him during that period. “I said to him ‘Italy is on the backburner’, as England was my main focus at the time,” Lamb explains.

“A year or two later, once Conor had gone and towards the end of Kieran Crowley’s time last year before the World Cup, I thought I was getting better at my rugby, so I was weighing up both England and Italy.

“The opportunity came where it could almost go either way. Kieran got in touch and said, ‘what are you thinking?’ I thought there was an opportunity to be involved in a World Cup then and obviously Italian rugby was going in a very positive direction.

“That was when I got involved last summer in the build-up to the World Cup, then I got given the opportunity to go to France and really enjoyed my time there.”

“My shoulder was supposed to take three months and ended up taking seven to eight months

The World Cup was a mixed bag for Italy, who won their opening games against Namibia and Uruguay before suffering hammerings at the hands of New Zealand and France.

But with the Six Nations around the corner, the future looked bright for Lamb – until disaster struck in a Premiership clash with Gloucester at the end of 2023.

“I did my shoulder while scoring a try of all things… just how I dived down to score it, my shoulder popped out the front, it was a full dislocation and I needed a Latarjet operation,” he said.

“It was supposed to take three months and ended up taking seven to eight months and I’ve just come back now to full fitness.”

He added: “I was on the phone with Gonzo (Quesada) two or three weeks before, when I had a little head knock against Toulouse. He just wanted to check it was all OK.  Then I score that try and put my shoulder out.

“The week after that it would have been Six Nations time in early January. It was frustrating. My shoulder took a lot longer than it was meant to in terms of coming back. I should have got the end of that season.

“Then I was on the phone with (Quesada) wanting to check if I could be involved in the summer tour when they went to Samoa, Tonga and Japan. It was all very frustrating, but it’s nice to be back. My shoulder is very healthy, but it did take a long time.”

Lamb started the season strongly, featuring five times for Quins before returning to international duty this month and working his way into the Italy starting side after featuring from the bench against Argentina.

It’s nice that Gonzo (Quesada) is very similar in the way that Italy want to attack, it’s great. It suits my style of play and I really enjoy that.

Capable of playing in the back row as well as at lock, Lamb believes his positional versatility has had an impact on his attitude and approach to the game as much as his chances of selection.

“It’s the upbringing I’ve had in my career, especially at Quins: always go with the flow a little bit, position changing, and be relaxed,” he says.

“I play 4, 5 and 6. I wouldn’t really say I have a favourite. I’m happy to call, I’m happy to be out wide. It’s almost become a bit more of a blend for me.

“Especially at Quins with the style we end up playing, I’m suited to being out wide and (Quins attack coach) Nick Evans has allowed me to be that forward who can go out wide or happily come in. At Quins it’s speed over shape, it’s what you see in front of you.

“That’s also part of the reason I wanted to come over here – when I saw Kieran (Crowley) and the style of play that he wanted to go with. It’s nice that Gonzo (Quesada) is also very similar in the way that Italy want to attack, it’s great. It suits my style of play and I really enjoy that.”

The task facing Lamb next is a daunting, if familiar, one as the All Blacks roll into town.

Last September, the Azzurri bounced into their Rugby World Cup pool game against New Zealand on the back of two wins and with optimism that they could take the fight to the seemingly struggling giants, who had lost their opener to hosts France.

Instead, Italy were demolished 96-17 in Lyon, a game Lamb started, taking their 100% losing run in the fixture to 16 games and leaving many members of the Azzurri squad with a bitter and unwanted memory in the back of their minds ahead of this weekend’s clash under the lights of the Juventus Stadium in Turin.

“It was a tough day at the office. The review afterwards was to write down everything on a piece of paper where you think you could’ve done better. We took those points. But that sort of thing is tough,” Lamb recalled.

“Playing them again on Saturday, it’s a slightly new team, new coaching staff, and we want to see what the boys can put out there. We will throw a few shots here and there and we’re working on what we want to do and bring. That will be exciting. It will be good to get stuck into them.”

You respect them for what they are and what they bring to rugby in general, the superstar mentality of who they are, the black jersey, all that…But there is no bigger opportunity in that sense.

One thing Lamb won’t be doing, though, is wasting his time worrying about the weight of history working against the Italians.

“Personally, I’ve never been interested in stats like that,” he said.

“It’s just another game of rugby, in this case the All Blacks. You respect them for what they are and what they bring to rugby in general, the superstar mentality of who they are, the black jersey, all that. You respect that and the challenge that it is.

“But there is no bigger opportunity in that sense. They have always been a top side. Personally, it’s another opportunity to go against the best.

“To test yourself against the best is something that every person in sport wants, to compete against the best and show what you can put out there. It’s an exciting challenge.”