Italy appear to have consigned their woeful 2009 Six Nations campaign to the history books and are entering this year's battle with renewed hope and faith in their ability.

Last year Nick Mallet's side completed a tough tour of the southern hemisphere where they registered three close defeats against the powerful Wallabies (twice) and All Blacks (by far the most encouraging one). On the back of that tour the Azzurri delivered an extraordinary string of performances during their November campaign against New Zealand, South Africa and Samoa, beating the Islanders for the first time ever and putting and end to the long losing streak that dated back to the 2008 win in Rome against Scotland.

Now the Six Nations will show what futher progress has been made by Mallett and his troops and whether last year was simply an illusion or if Italy are finally ready to play active part in this glorious competition. Don’t be fooled folks, Bergamasco and Co will still be battling for last place with the Scots but with the future of the game in Italy at stake, all eyes will be on the way the Azzurri approach their matches, especially the ones played at Flaminio.

Every team goes out with the intention of competing, but it is true that success begins at home and even though Italy only have only two fixtures at the Flaminio to look forward to, Mallet knows very well that the England and the Scotland encounters will be crucial and will be drilling that into his side. For the first time since 2004 the Azzurri have the chance to build some real momentum. After what will no doubt be a terribile start in Dublin against the defending champions, England will visit the “Capitale” and two weeks later the Scots will follow suit.

With a little luck the Azzurri may travel to Cardiff in round four with some confidence and hope that their hosts opt to use the 'easy' fixture to experiment. And then Italy will have the chance to win its second away game of its young Six Nations history. I honestly think this could happen, even in such a competitive environment as the Six Nations and even without the guidance of Sergio Parisse, sidelined by a knee injury.

If the Azzurri are able to conjure the defensive intensity that they displayed in June and November, and if they succeed with a kicking game based on the boot of Gower and McLean, then they may surprise one or two. The Italian scrum is still one of the best in Europe and with the return of the rolling maul, Leonardo Ghiraldini and his cohorts are ready to threaten the Home Nations - and France.

Enrico Borra