Rugby-Captain Lamaro lauds Italy's second-half comeback against Uruguay

"I think we've got 10 points, if you asked me before to have 10 points after two games I would have taken it," Lamaro said. "It's unbelievable the energy this group has, the way we are together the way we live together.

It was all going horribly wrong for Italy as they trailed Uruguay by 10 points at the break in their Rugby World Cup Pool A encounter on Wednesday but a halftime reckoning got them back on track before they powered to a 38-17 victory. A penalty try and yellow cards for Niccolo Cannone and Danilo Fischetti left Italy chasing the game and the interval brought about a change in their approach.

"We got back into the changing room and we said we screwed it up and we handled it, just embraced the challenge," captain Michele Lamaro said. "I think we stepped back into the field with confidence, you know, stick together every single moment, win the little battles to win the final war."

Two wins from their opening two games, along with two bonus points set Italy up nicely for their remaining fixtures with New Zealand and France. "I think we've got 10 points, if you asked me before to have 10 points after two games I would have taken it," Lamaro said.

"It's unbelievable the energy this group has, the way we are together the way we live together. It's something unbelievable." Lamaro also had plenty of praise for Italy's opponents.

"I told all the Uruguayan guys they can be proud of their performance, they put us under a lot of pressure but in these moments, what counts the most is how strong is the team and in the second half we showed that and smashed everything we could."