IRELAND GIRVAN DEMPSEY Rating 6.5 Could have been in for a difficult afternoon if Roland de Marigny had thumped up a few to him. Knocked a couple on, more through hesitancy than lack of concentration.

There was an interesting cameo early in the second half where a ball was put up in the tramlines. It was almost a battle of wills between himself and Murphy to see who would catch it. In the end they both knocked it on.

SHANE HORGAN Rating 8 Has had quite a quiet Six Nations so far. That is not to say that he hasn't been busy, it's just that he's not as prominent as he has been in the past. Yesterday was his busiest day. Took the ball up for an inordinate amount of carries and burst on to O'Gara's . at ball for his try.

BRIAN O'DRISCOLL Rating 8 An imperfect performance that mixed good and bad ? with a serious amount more good than bad. His try was vintage O'Driscoll ? loose ball down the right-hand side packed with Italian tacklers, reverse direction and look for forwards. Fabio Ongaro never got onto his toes and O'Driscoll approached terminal velocity simply went by him. Looks much sharper, almost match . t now.

GORDON D'ARCY Rating 8 Not a day when you can drift onto long passes, do a semicheck or shuffle and then go again but was wonderfully aggressive. He looked like a stocky little fat boy from the East End who refused to be put down.

GEORDAN MURPHY Rating 6 It is incredible how quickly professional players can get back playing after serious injury. Murphy is nowhere near right. You could see it every time he got the ball into his hands. There was no movement off either leg nor did he have the con. dence to try it. He just ran straight. It would have been just as pro. table to have Tyrone Howe there in that regard.

However his hands and his feet, despite being not match fit, were still top drawer.

RONAN O'GARA Rating 7. 5 A difficult afternoon for the Corkman. When you are charged with putting your pack into forward position, it can be quite frustrating when the elements thwart your best attempts. Even though O'Gara would have one of the better wind games in world rugby, he struggled for consistency. Ran well and defended well against a stream of Italian runners.

PETER STRINGER Rating 6 Spent a lot of the afternoon . apping his hands in frustration. As the Italians collapsed their mauls, he came over on the wrong side and spent an age rolling away from ball on the ground. The effects of the tear in his thumb might still be upsetting him.

REGGIE CORRIGAN Rating 5.5 Not a great afternoon for Reggie. Just seemed to lack the level of industry required to deal with this Italian eight.

His tackle count and time on the ball were on the low side.

SHANE BYRNE Rating 8 Yesterday was the sort of a day that is a nightmare for hookers. Even though Ireland coughed up a number of turnovers at lineout time, it was forgivable in these conditions. Carried the ball with tremendous aggression on a number of occasions. Also cleaned up well on any loose ball at lineouts.

JOHN HAYES Rating 7 Reasonable outing. Andrea Lo Cicero didn't present too many problems for him. Got his men up into the air well.

MALCOLM O'KELLY Rating 8.5 Very dif. cult to repeat the performance of last week but came close. Another excellent lineout performance. There were a number of notable interventions in loose play and he was full of combustible and nervous energy. Maybe it was just to set a mark for the guy he was packing down with in the second row.

DONNCHA O'CALLAGHAN Rating 7 For all his youthful enthusiasm he still lacks the cold-blooded killer instinct of Paul O'Connell. Won his own ball handy, nicked a few and carried pro. ciently.

SIMON EASTERBY Rating 7 Earned his porridge in the second half with a couple of monster hits on Andrea de Rossi and Aaron Persico. His in. uence because of the weather conditions at the back of the lineout was predictable. He got the ball into his hand more than he has done in the championship so far.

KEITH GLEESON Rating 8.5 An excellent performance particularly out wide where he spent a lot of time trying to force the tackle and put his centres into space. Put in a number of invaluable hits just before his injury. His absence from the Scottish game next Saturday with a broken forearm is a disaster.

ANTHONY FOLEY Rating 9 My man of the match. For a guy who is well into his 30s, he plays with the spark and enthusiasm of a 20-year-old.

Always seemed to be on the ball and again when the Italians were pushing in the second half, he soaked up a lot of pressure.

SUBSTITUTES Victor Costello 7 Marcus Horan 7 Kevin Maggs, Guy Easterby, David Humphreys, Frankie Sheahan and Gary Longwell were not on long enough to be rated ITALY Gonzalo Canale 6 Nicola Mazzucaato 7 Cristian Stoica 8.5 Matteo Barbini 6 Denis Dallan 5 Roland de Marigny 5 Paul Griffen 6 Andrea Lo Cicero 7 Fabio Ongaro 7 Martin Castrogiovanni 8 Carlo Checcinato 6 Marco Bortolami 6 Andrea de Rossi 8 Aaron Persico 7 Scott Palmer 6 SUBSTITUTES Santiago Dellape 5 Mirco Bergamasco 6 Andrea Masi 5