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Epic stadium scenes emerge from Serie A Elite derby in Italy
By Josh Raisey
The Stadio Mario Battaglini played host to the 'Derby d'Italia' on Sunday as Serie A Elite leaders Rovigo welcomed Petrarca.
With just 25 miles separating the two clubs in northern Italy, it is a hotly contested derby with a 75-year history and almost 200 contests.
The hosts came out on top in their latest meeting, beating Petrarca 12-10 in the 178th clash between the two sides to maintain their lead at the top of the league with a ten point lead over the third-place visitors.
There is no clearer sign of the importance of this derby to its fans than the reaction to the win. Rovigo shared a video on social media of the players celebrating with a rapturous crowd, with flags waving and flares lit.
Take a look at the scenes:
View this post on Instagram
Head coach Alessandro Lodi said after the match (translated by Google): “It was a very difficult match. I want to congratulate Petrarca for playing a great match, I think the best this year.
"We started badly, in the first half we were very tight, Petrarca had possession and territory. Between the first and second half I told the boys that the time had come to attack, they had spent a lot but achieved little. In the second half we managed to overturn the result, we had more clarity.
"We are happy for the public, the boys showed that they have a lot of heart and have the right mentality."
Rovigo travel to take on fourth-place Valorugby Emilia in the next round, while Petrarca host seventh-place Rugby Lyons.
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I like the offside rule, but this won't affect my team because all their kicks gets chased and that putts everyone on side. Lekker manne!
Go to comments20 minute Red Card is untenable. If you don’t punish the whole team, coaches won’t be sufficently incentivised to pick players with, or coach better tackle technique.
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