line out

The Welsh driving line-out brought an Aaron Wainwright score, a penalty try and two yellow cards in the closing stages of the contest as Italy finished with 13 players.

And by shortening the line-out – a potential area of weakness - they thinned out Ireland's thicket of jumpers.

And while that trio offers speed, mobility and breakdown menace, the selection may give Ireland - for whom the 6ft 6in Ryan Baird is a surprise inclusion - the edge at the line-out.

"We have enough line-out jumpers. The line-out is a massive part of the game and we have a well-oiled machine," said the lock, who has replaced Saracens team-mate Jamie George as England's skipper.

And the line-out, like at the World Cup, faltered at key times.