ROME (AP) — Italy beat England for the first time in a rugby international on Saturday.
Italy triumphed 23-18 at the Stadio Olimpico, finally knocking off the only team it hadn’t beaten since it joined the Six Nations in 2000.
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Italy's Tommaso Menoncello scores a try during the Six Nations rugby union match between Italy and England in Rome, Saturday, March 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Italy's Monty Ioane, left, is challenged by England's Tommy Roebuck during the Six Nations rugby union match between Italy and England in Rome, Saturday, March 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Italy's Leonardo Marin, center, scores a try during the Six Nations rugby union match between Italy and England in Rome, Saturday, March 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
England's players stand on the pitch at the end of the Six Nations rugby union match between Italy and England in Rome, Saturday, March 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
In a scrappy match, the home side claimed the lead for the third and final time with eight minutes to go after a Leonardo Marin try converted by Paolo Garbisi, who was a perfect five-of-five off the kicking tee.
Italy erupted in joy at fulltime, and a little relief. Having beaten Scotland at home in round one, Italy believed it had its best ever chance to topple a deflated England.
“We felt tension before the game,” Italy captain Michele Lamaro said. “We felt this game was close. We were nervous. Our confidence built during the game. We stuck together as a wall in defense.”
Defeat was England's third in a row following a 12-match winning streak, and it could get worse. England faces title-chasing France in Paris in the final round next Saturday with the possibility of suffering four defeats in the same championship for the first time in 50 years.
There's even a very slim chance England could end up with the wooden spoon if a heavy defeat to France follows a big win by Wales over Italy. As it stands, Italy has overtaken England in the table to fourth place.
Asked why things have gone so wrong for England, captain Maro Itoje said, "We have to figure it out. If we knew we wouldn't be in this position. We have to stick together. Teams go through tough periods and we are going through a tough period now.
“We have to own the result and it is a results business. As captain, I take responsibility for that.”
England’s win-loss record against Italy was 32-0 since the 1991 Rugby World Cup in tests capped by both sides, and 26-0 in the Six Nations. England averaged 36.2 points at Stadio Olimpico.
But England contributed to its historic defeat when it received two late yellow cards while in the lead.
At 18-10, flanker Sam Underhill was sin-binned for head contact on Italy prop Danilo Fischetti. Garbisi slotted that penalty kick and another soon after off the post to cut the gap to two.
Itoje was sin-binned in the 64th for illegally slapping the ball in a maul and 13 men were playing Italy's 15.
England held out and got Underhill back. Then Italy produced the try of the match.
Garbisi kick-passed to left winger Monty Ioane near halfway. Ioane charged and offloaded to Tommaso Menoncello, who bumped off Elliot Daly and passed inside to midfield partner Marin to finish off.
Until then, England looked like hanging on after coach Steve Borthwick named a new backline amid 12 team changes, three of them positional, in the most changes by England in the Six Nations era.
England dominated the first quarter but without any punch until center Tommy Freeman scored from an Alex Coles miss-out pass.
Menoncello replied with a break and 40-meter solo try for 10-5 but England reclaimed the lead right on halftime. A counterattack was capped by Fin Smith's kick-pass to scorer Tom Roebuck that Smith converted for 12-10.
Smith added two more penalties after halftime for 18-10 with Italy down a man after hooker Giacomo Nicotera was yellow-carded for a cynical ruck foul.
But instead of taking advantage, England's discipline imploded.
“We are gutted,” Borthwick said. “For 60 minutes, we are in control and those two sin-bins hurt us. Discipline is a significant factor, it is something we have to improve.”
AP rugby: https://apnews.com/hub/rugby
Italy's Tommaso Menoncello scores a try during the Six Nations rugby union match between Italy and England in Rome, Saturday, March 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Italy's Monty Ioane, left, is challenged by England's Tommy Roebuck during the Six Nations rugby union match between Italy and England in Rome, Saturday, March 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Italy's Leonardo Marin, center, scores a try during the Six Nations rugby union match between Italy and England in Rome, Saturday, March 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
England's players stand on the pitch at the end of the Six Nations rugby union match between Italy and England in Rome, Saturday, March 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
HILO, Hawaii (AP) — Hurricane Nolo just skirted the Hawaiian Islands as it gained intensity on Saturday, but officials said it still posed a risk for flash floods, dangerous winds and extreme surf in areas recovering from previous storms.
Nolo was churning very slowly south of the Big Island with maximum sustained winds of 90 mph (150 kph). Its center was about 160 miles (260 kilometers) south-southwest of Hawaii's southernmost point, and it was forecast to strengthen into a major hurricane late Sunday and early Monday while traveling westward to the south of the islands.
A hurricane watch was canceled, and direct landfall by the storm's center was not expected. But forecasters said its outer bands could cause life-threatening flooding and mudslides, with parts of the Big Island expected to see rainfall totals up to 20 inches (51 centimeters). Heavy rain also was expected on the other islands.
“Don’t venture out if you don’t have to into the dangerous flooding environment, but also high winds. We can have trees and power lines down,” said Michael Brennan, director of the National Hurricane Center.
Heavy rain continued to fall across the southern part of the Big Island in the afternoon, leading to partial closures of one of the main highways connecting Kailua-Kona in the west to Hilo in the east.
Near the community of Naalehu on the island’s southern point, National Guard members were seen guiding a man who was driving across flooded streets as he tried to leave his home in the heavy downpour. More than 120 guard members were activated on the island, part of roughly 400 statewide after the governor issued an emergency proclamation.
The humanitarian nonprofit group CORE and other partners spent the week packing and shipping supplies like camp stoves and hygiene products by air cargo from Oahu to the Big Island for a community relief hub that has been active since August's Hurricane Lala.
Residents are still recovering from Lala, which produced heavy rain and winds strong enough to sweep about 100 homes off their foundations on the Big Island.
About a dozen people were in the water Saturday morning at Carlsmith Beach Park in Hilo on the Big Island, despite signs saying the strand was closed. Andrea Gill was out for her regular swim before heading back home to hunker down with family.
“I hope it stops just sitting there and moves and goes somewhere else,” Gill said of the slow-moving storm.
Shop owners boarded up businesses, and events were canceled. Gill said storms are common, but hurricanes are rare. She was holding out hope that the islands might not get the full impact.
“We're used to lots of rain. We're not used to wind. So it's always a blessing when we don't get the wind from the hurricane,” she said.
President Donald Trump approved an emergency declaration Friday, authorizing the Federal Emergency Management Agency to coordinate assistance and provide funding support. State officials told residents to put together emergency kits, and Hawaii County authorities urged people in flood-prone areas to consider taking refuge at shelters or elsewhere.
Hawaiian Electric, the state’s primary utility, said crews helping restore power in Kauai after this month’s Hurricane Lowell returned to Oahu, Maui and the Big Island in preparation for the storm.
The Pacific has been unusually active this season, according to National Weather Service lead forecaster Bob Oravec, with storm activity running above average during what is already the peak of hurricane season. He said that pattern is consistent with El Niño years, when the Pacific often sees more tropical storms and hurricanes.
Meanwhile Mexico was under the threat of Hurricane Polo as it headed toward the Baja California Peninsula after bringing storm conditions to the southwestern coast. Polo had maximum sustained winds of 140 mph (220 kph), making it a Category 4 storm, but it was expected to weaken somewhat before making landfall Monday.
One of the towns in the hurricanes projected path is San Juanico, a small fishing community on Baja’s Pacific coast where access to basic needs is already fickle.
“Our people are concerned about this event,” said Gloriely Robles Meza, a manager at a small hotel. “We haven’t faced such a worrying situation in many years.”
The town has only had full-time electricity for a couple of years, and it still experiences frequent outages. Without power, residents can’t refrigerate food or pump water. The closest gas station is so far away that fuel is stored in and sold from tanks, and supply frequently runs out if there is high demand.
Robles Meza said the community feels left to brace itself for the storm without the help of authorities.
“We must prepare on our own — each of us protecting our homes and belongings,” she said, adding that she wished officials would preposition heavy machinery for clearing roads, along with emergency generators.
For now, she said, the only plan is to convert the local elementary school into a shelter.
“While this is important, we also have other impacts to consider,” Robles Meza said, like what the town will do if it is cut off from help.
San Juanico has experienced late-summer storms, but Polo feels different, said Jeffrey Westman, an American who was first drawn to the town’s world-class surf break 40 years ago and owns a property there.
“During the last couple of years, the storms have felt big and strong and scary,” said Westman, 63, who was in Europe at the moment but worried for the locals, particularly about their ability to receive food deliveries or reach larger grocery stores if road access is cut off.
Washed-out roads could also block access to the closest medical facility, about 80 minutes away in Ciudad Constitucion.
Westman said hopes Polo behaves as some past storms have, losing intensity before reaching the peninsula.
“A lot of times they do start petering out,” he said. “I’m hoping that’s the case.”
Associated Press writers Christopher Weber in Los Angeles and Gabriela Aoun Angueira in San Diego, California, contributed.
Ryanna Fry takes a picture of clouds as Hurricane Nolo sits nearby in Kona, Hawaii, Friday, Sept. 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
A man crosses the road as Hurricane Nolo sits nearby Saturday, Sept. 26, 2026, in Hilo, Hawaii. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
A man walks among rocks while fishing as Hurricane Nolo sits nearby Saturday, Sept. 26, 2026, in Hilo, Hawaii. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
A lifeguard walks back to his tower after adjusting a beach closure sign as Hurricane Nolo sits nearby Saturday, Sept. 26, 2026, in Hilo, Hawaii. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
Kawika Ige fishes as Hurricane Nolo sits nearby Friday, Sept. 25, 2026, in Hilo, Hawaii. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
A man walks past a closed ticket counter for Southwest Airlines lined with sandbags at Hilo International Airport as Hurricane Nolo sits nearby Friday, Sept. 25, 2026, in Hilo, Hawaii. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
Chase Gabin fishes among the rocks as Hurricane Nolo sits nearby Friday, Sept. 25, 2026, in Hilo, Hawaii. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
Louie Taasan places sand bags along his driveway as Hurricane Nolo sits nearby Friday, Sept. 25, 2026, in Hilo, Hawaii. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
Kenzielynn Kekoa, center, of Hilo, Hawaii, helps her family fill sand bags as Hurricane Nolo approaches in Hilo, Hawaii, Friday, Sept. 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Eugene Garcia)
