England have never been beaten by Italy in their 23 previous meetings although they came close in Rome six years ago, camping back from 15-6 down to win 19-15, their joint-smallest margin of victory over the Azzurri.
Few expect Italy to run them as close as that this time around, with Eddie Jones’ men having been beaten just once in the 28 months since their humiliating Rugby World Cup 2015 exit.
But England have plenty of injuries to contend with and will want to get up to speed quickly against the Italians with a home tie against Wales just a week away.
Express Sport brings you all the action from England’s opening Six Nations match in Rome.
- England: Brown; Watson, Te'o, Farrell, May; Ford, B Youngs; M Vunipola, Hartley, Cole, Launchbury, Itoje, Lawes, Robshaw, Simmonds
- Italy: Minozzi; Benvenuti, Boni, Castello, Bellini; Allan, Violi; Lovotti, Ghiraldini, Ferrari, Zanni, Budd, Negri, Giammarioli, Parisse
- Kick-off 3pm
- England’s only two defeats in the last 19 Six Nations fixtures both came against Ireland in Dublin
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Italy vs England LIVE
2.55pm: Here come the players, with Zanni walking out for his 100th cpa on his own first. Nice moment.
Now for the best (maybe?) and the worst (maybe?) anthem of the Six Nations and then we will resume hostilities...
2.50pm: Oh and if you though Ben Te'o was a hard runner, this is the ankle treatment he paid for out of his own pocket. Look away now...
"I tore a couple of ligaments in my ankle so I had surgery and they put a tightrope through it to tighten it up and make sure it's all secure,” Te’o said last month.
"I've got a few screws, a plate, that kind of stuff.
“I got a bit of hardware in the ankle and the it was about learning to walk and run again.”
2.40pm: The Italian side has plenty of punch in it too, you know. Captained by the evergreen Sergio Parisse (cap No 130 for him), they welcome back Alessandro Zanni, who will win his 100th cap in the second row.
Much of their game will be run by Tommaso "Tommy" Allan at fly-half, the man who played Scotland U20s before switching allegiances to follow his mother's blood. Coach Conor O'Shea has promised to play running rugby.
"We think we're in a miles better place than we were 12 months ago,” O’Shea said.
“I think we have a better foundation than people understand in our game. We will go for it and we won't die wondering as opposed to being secure."
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2.30pm: Let's take a closer look at this England team. Eddie Jones has just insisted that he is simply upholding the principles of English rugby by picking the biggest blokes he can - but for me he's got a point to prove after "ruck-gate" last year.
Courtney Lawes and Chris Robshaw, combined with Joe Launchbury and Maro Itoje, makes that loose forward group something to behold.
Ben Te'o is back too - he's play at 13 instead of Jonathan Joseph and will also add physicality. I think they could punch some pretty big holes in the line this afternoon.
2.15pm: Remember last year when these two sides met? Remember that? The Italians decided not to contest rucks and were able to disrupt England's attacking rhythm by standing in apparently offside positions, blocking passing lanes.
It was one of the most unusual games of rugby I have ever seen - and a very thought-provoking one. Will Italy do it again? No - because the rules have changed to stop them doing so.
However, they've promised more trickery so keep your eyes peeled. I can't wait to see what they got planned. Kick-off is 45 minutes away.