Hurts hit Calvin Ridley for a 4-yard touchdown and

Italys success against South Africa was, of course, one of the most important wins in its rugby history. The Springboks are ranked fourth in the world and had never been beaten by their hosts before.But victory in Florence was also a triumph for all Italians, during a difficult time for the country.Lets start with the first, essential, news -- the team won the rugby game. It may sound na?ve but it is key. In the recent past, Italy have beaten both France and Ireland for the first time, and went close in other big games too.They almost beat Australia in Florence in 2012, losing by just three points. Italy have twice finished within a converted try of England -- in a freezing Rome in 2010 and then at Twickenham three years later -- and lost 20-6 to New Zealand in front of a record crowd at San Siro.So, they got close. They almost did it, yet they were beaten. Close, but no cigar.On Saturday in Florence they got a huge win and that will make a heck of a difference. A terrific performance was built on their play at the breakdown -- Italy were close to perfect at rucks -- on a top-class defence and on their ability to keep the scoreboard moving when they had the chance.They won the game by dominating the fundamentals of the game. How many times could you say that? Never. Even during those celebrated wins against France and Ireland they were not as competent in the basics.Defensive consultant Brendan Venters influence has been displayed in the blitz-oriented defensive approach adopted on Saturday. It was that system that exposed the essence of Simone Favaro in his entire beauty, and made the difference. But mainly Italy won on aggression and intensity.I have never seen an Italian rugby side playing with such a hunger. I have watched the game again and again and it is impossible to ignore the way that every single aspect of the game, from personal battles to more broader line movements, has been turned into a physical battle by Conor OShea and his staff.Against a Springboks side that in their previous outings showed a total lack of its once devastating tactical kicking game, winning every clash was crucial. And thats where Italy won the game.To ensure possession -- not always necessarily of a high quality -- OShea gave solutions to Italys recent lineout problems with variations. And those variations in jump, throw and time did the job.Then there was the coldness of the Italian kickers. Carlo Canna with those huge try conversions and Edoardo Padovani with that halfway-line penalty that kept the Springboks in reach. Again, Italy got the fundamentals absolutely right.A few words should also be said on Sergio Parisses new role. Every media outlet highlighted the huge performance by the Italy captain but he was not centerstage as he used to be. And that was another key factor in the overall production of his teammates. He played a solid game, he was inspirational as he always is for the team, yet he played like an international No. 8.Parisse did not overcook plays, he wasnt asked to do extra work as he was made to in the past and from the stands the feeling was that he didnt feel obliged to take responsibility in every aspect of the game. OShea made his contribution a crucial part of a team performance. It happened, with less evidence, in that second win over France but for the first time Italy fans saw a sort of Stade Francais-version of Sergio Parisse.And is not a coincidence that we could admire the rise of Padovani, Canna and Giorgio Bronzini, just to name a few, and the return of Tommaso Benvenuti to his highest standards. That is another interesting aspect of the OShea era -- selection policy was finally at its best.We all know that it wasnt by far the best South Africa side ever to run onto a rugby pitch but that was the best XV Coetzee could pick from his tour squad. Italy were given a chance to make history and they took it, capitalising on that one and only opportunity.Details? Not at all. It was the sign of a different mentality. A huge rise in confidence that OSheas system has brought into a revitalised squad.The historic victory put rugby back on the mainstream media radar, reigniting a flame across the country that seemed to be slowly dying. The Azzurri were back on the national newspapers front page and got a lot of attention from national TV. The entire country celebrated this victory.Now Italy have an immediate maturity test. They must perform against Tonga and record a comfortable win.On Saturday in Padua, the Azzurri will not win with the same recipe the they used to beat the Springboks, though. Patience and composure will be vital. Only methodically absorbing the Islanders aggression at the breakdown and winning from that a probable high number of penalties will guarantee the win. They may well end up doing what top tier rugby nations usually do against Italy: stretch the score in the final quarter of the game.It wont be easy for a team that in the past has never shown the ability to control a rugby match. But after that historical result in Florence there is a chance for Italian fans to celebrate their best ever autumn international campaign. Wholesale Fake Jerseys .com) - The game was all punts and field goals before Kodi Whitfields catch. Fake Jerseys For Sale . Louis Blues. Shane Hnidy joins Brian Munz for the broadcast on TSN 1290 Radio at 7pm ct. https://www.fakejersey.com/ . 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TUSCALOOSA, Ala. -- Nick Saban wants his Alabama players to take a little break after a rugged stretch of games, so long as they dont get too comfortable.The top-ranked Crimson Tide polished off a third straight ranked opponent Saturday with a 33-14 victory over No. 9 Texas A&M in the defending national champions second Top 10 matchup in a row.The Tide (8-0, 5-0 Southeastern Conference) still have some tests ahead, but that was the stretch that seemed most likely to induce a stumble.I want the players to get some rest, relax and get healthy, but we cant be relieved, Saban said after the game. We cant be relieved that we won this game. Its a big difference in resting, relaxing and working to improve, and being relieved.Weve got lots of games against a lot of good teams coming up when we start back playing again that can have a tremendous impact on what kind of season that we have.Now the team gets an extra week to recuperate before visiting No. 19 LSU on Nov. 5. The regular-season finale against No. 15 Auburn also represents a potential challenge.Alabamas most pressing task now is to figure out how to replace injured safety Eddie Jackson. Saban said Jackson is out for the season with a fractured leg suffered on a fourth-quarter punt return against the Aggies, who came in as the only other SEC team without a loss.Jackson was a playmaker who already had returned two punts and an interception for touchdowns. The seniors backup is Hootie Jones, who has 16 tackles and three pass breakups.We all kind of took leadership roles in the secondary, cornerback Minkah Fitzpatrick said. But Eddie was the one who took over, so now its our turn to step up.It was aa tough blow at the end of a three-game stretch that Alabama navigated fairly easily, including road wins over Arkansas (49-30) and Tennessee (49-10).ddddddddddddOtherwise, the Tide emerged unscathed as the SECs lone unbeaten team while receiving all but one first-place vote in The Associated Press rankings .Texas A&M did challenge Alabama for nearly 45 minutes and even led midway through the third quarter, the deepest the Tide has trailed all season. Then Jalen Hurts hit Calvin Ridley for a 4-yard touchdown and defensive end Jonathan Allen scored on a 30-yard fumble return to grab control of the game.Challenge answered.It was the 12th touchdown Alabama has scored on either special teams or defense. That matches the number of TDs allowed by the Tides defense so far.Hurts is also directing an offense that leads the SEC and ranks seventh nationally in scoring, averaging 43.9 points per game.Alabama held Texas A&M and the leagues top rushing attack to 114 yards and no touchdowns on the ground. Quarterback Trevor Knight was sacked five times while Trayveon Williams gained only 23 yards on nine carries after coming in leading the SEC in rushing yards per game.But `Bama doesnt sound relieved to make it this far with a perfect record.We just know we had a lot of plays left out there to make, tight end O.J. Howard said. And we know theres a high standard for us and everybodys not really satisfied with this and theres a long season to go and weve just got to get better.---AP college football web site: www.collegefootball.ap.org ' ' '