Chiefs to go head-to-head in Italy v Australia clash

Exeter Chiefs teammates will become rivals this weekend as Italy welcome Australia to the Bluenergy Stadium in Udine.

Gonzalo Quesada’s Italian side includes Stephen Varney, Ross Vintcent and Andrea Zambonin in the starting XV while Joe Schmidt has selected back-rower Tom Hooper to start on the blindside flank for the Wallabies.

Saturday’s match-up marks Italy’s first of the Quilter Nations Series while the Wallabies suffered defeat to England at Allianz Stadium, Twickenham last Saturday afternoon. Juan Ignacio Brex captains the Azzurri while Harry Wilson leads out the Wallabies on Italian soil.

Schmidt said: “The group have rolled up their sleeves and had a solid week of preparation after dusting themselves off from what was a frustrating performance last weekend.

“We know we’ll need to be better on Saturday against the Azzurri. They’ll be well prepared and confident after their highly competitive showing in the Six Nations earlier this year.”

The fixture, which kicks off at 17:40 on Saturday 8 November, will be broadcast live on TNT Sports.