England vs Italy: Manu Tuilagi and Brad Shields both score twice in 57-14 Twickenham rout

Relive the action from the Six Nations clash at Twickenham

England v Italy: Six Nations match preview

England got back to winning ways with an emphatic 57-14 rout of Italy to ensure that their Six Nations title hopes remain alive heading into the final weekend.

Both Manu Tuilagi and Brad Shields scored tries in each half, with Jamie George, Jonny May and George Kruis adding to the landslide seven-try victory, while Italy's two tries came through a first-half score from Tommaso Allan and a late consolation from Luca Morisi.

It means that England trail Wales by just one point going into the final weekend of the championship, although Wales will win the Grand Slam if they beat Ireland next Saturday. Should they slip up though, England can pounce and reclaim the title if they can beat Scotland at Twickenham.

Relive all the action below.

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Key Points

• England thrash Italy 57-14 at Twickenham
• Eddie Jones' side trail Wales at top of Six Nations table by one points
• Wales beat Scotland 18-11 to remain on course for Grand Slam glory
• Ireland host France in Dublin on Sunday afternoon

[9 March 2019 09:37 · Jack de Menezes]

Good morning and welcome to The Independent's live coverage of today's Six Nations clash between England and Italy, brought to you from pitchside at Twickenham.

It's a dark, grey and gloomy day in south-west London, where the action gets underway at 4:45pm, and we'll be beginning our in-depth build-up to the match from 3:45pm.

The earlier game today sees Scotland take on Wales in a clahs that will have a big say in where the championship ends up next weekend, and you can follow the match live before we get underway at Twickenham.

[9 March 2019 15:44 · Jack de Menezes]

The team sheets are in and, despite Eddie Jones' hints that Maro Itoje could be drafted in if he proves his fitness, there's no changes to either side.

[9 March 2019 15:45 · Jack de Menezes]

Here's how the two teams line up:

England: Elliot Daly; Joe Cokanasiga, Manu Tuilagi, Ben Te'o, Jonny May; Owen Farrell, Ben Youngs; Ellis Genge, Jamie George, Kyle Sinckler; Joe Launchbury, George Kruis, Brad Shields, Tom Curry, Billy Vunipola.

Replacements: Luke Cowan-Dickie, Ben Moon, Dan Cole, Nathan Hughes, Mark Wilson, Dan Robson, George Ford, Henry Slade.

Italy: Jayden Hayward; Edoardo Padovani, Michele Campagnaro, Luca Morisi, Angelo Esposito; Tommaso Allan, Tito Tebaldi; Andrea Lovotti, Luca Bigi, Simone Ferrari; Federico Ruzza, Dean Budd; Sebastian Negri, Braam Steyn, Sergio Parisse.

Replacements: Leonardo Ghiraldini, Cherif Traore, Tiziano Pasquali, David Sisi, Jake Polledri, Guglielmo Palazzani, Ian McKinley, Tommaso Castello.

Referee: Nic Berry (Australia).

Assistant referees: Paul Williams (New Zealand) and Andrew Brace (Ireland).

[9 March 2019 15:51 · Jack de Menezes]

I'm pleased to say that the gllomy skies above Twickenham have cleared significantly as the day has worn on. The sun is shining, but there's still a strong wind that could cause serious problems for the kickers later on.

[9 March 2019 16:20 · Jack de Menezes]

We wondered if Itoje would be slipped in by Jones at some point, but he's not even here for the warm-up so it looks like the lock has been given the day off to put his feet up and enjoy a rare weekend off.

Jones has insisted thought that Itoje is in the running to return to action against Scotland next weekend for the Calcutta Cup finale.

[9 March 2019 16:24 · Jack de Menezes]

Owen Farrell leads England into Twickenham 

[9 March 2019 16:35 · Jack de Menezes]

What to look out for today

Power

England will look to blast their way through the Italian defence if their selection is anything to go by. Owen Farrell has the useful weapons of Many Tuilagi, Ben Te'o and Joe Cokanasiga to pick from, who together weigh more than heavyweight boxers Deontay Wilder, Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury. If England can break up the Italian defence, the results could be carnage.

Tricks

Italy famously made Eddie Jones insist he will retire from rugby if he ever saw anything like the 'no-ruck' tactics that were employed here two years ago. It infuriated the Australian mainly because England were so bad at working out how to conquer it. Will they pull any similar tricks today? Conor O'Shea hasn't suggested so, but you never know when it comes to the cunning Irishman.

Bonus point

England need to claim the bonus point in order to maintain their championship hopes, given that Wales have now stretched their lead at the top of the table to six points. If England can score four tries today and win in style, it will cut the gap to just one point and prove the championship is still well and truly alive.

[9 March 2019 16:40 · Jack de Menezes]

And as Jerusalem comes to a finish, the players emerge into the mouth of the tunnel. Led out by Owen Farrell and Sergio Parisse, here they come!

[9 March 2019 16:41 · Jack de Menezes]

Time for the anthems...

[9 March 2019 16:45 · Jack de Menezes]

Pre-match ceremonies over and done with, it's time to get the rugby underway. England need to get back to winning ways and prove there's life in their Six Nations challenge yet. And for Italy? They'll be desperate to avoid a 21st consecutive defeat in this tournament. Here we go!