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Zebre Parma end URC season without a win

By PA
ebre Parma head coach Fabio Roselli before the United Rugby Championship match between Munster and Zebre Parma at Musgrave Park in Cork. (Photo By Piaras Ó Mídheach/Sportsfile via Getty Images)

Zebre Parma ended the United Rugby Championship season without a victory after falling to a 50-35 defeat by the Lions at Loftus Versfeld.

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An 18th loss from as many outings came despite a first-half hat-trick by wing Simone Gesi, who opened his account just 36 seconds into the game.

With both sides bottom of their respective shields and having no prospect of reaching the play-offs, the clash had a training-run feel that was reflected in an overall try count of 13.

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Zebre entered the match off the back of a 78-12 mauling by the Bulls and they at least went down fighting in Pretoria, finishing with a flourish.

The Lions did the bulk of the damage in the third quarter, outscoring the visitors from Italy three tries to nil, and saw Sanele Nohamba and Edwill van der Merwe cross twice each.

It was a nightmare afternoon for defence coaches with the carnage to come signposted by Gesi strolling over after just 36 seconds.

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Soliloquin 1 hour ago
Competing interests and rotated squads: What the 'player welfare summer' is really telling us

I don’t know the financial story behind the changes that were implemented, but I guess clubs started to lose money, Mourad Boudjellal won it all with Toulon, got tired and wanted to invest in football , the French national team was at its lowest with the QF humiliation in 2015 and the FFR needed to transform the model where no French talent could thrive. Interestingly enough, the JIFF rule came in during the 2009/2010 season, so before the Toulon dynasty, but it was only 40% of the players that to be from trained in French academies. But the crops came a few years later, when they passed it at the current level of 70%.

Again, I’m not a huge fan of under 18 players being scouted and signed. I’d rather have French clubs create sub-academies in French territories like Wallis and Futuna, New Caledonia and other places that are culturally closer to RU and geographically closer to rugby lands. Mauvaka, Moefana, Taofifenua bros, Tolofua bros, Falatea - they all came to mainland after starting their rugby adventure back home.

They’re French, they come from economically struggling areas, and rugby can help locally, instead of lumping foreign talents.

And even though many national teams benefit from their players training and playing in France, there are cases where they could avoid trying to get them in the French national team (Tatafu).

In other cases, I feel less shame when the country doesn’t believe in the player like in Meafou’s case.

And there are players that never consider switching to the French national team like Niniashvili, Merckler or even Capuozzo, who is French and doesn’t really speak Italian.

We’ll see with Jacques Willis 🥲


But hey, it’s nothing new to Australia and NZ with PI!

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