2017 Six Nations Championship squads 2017 Six Nations Championship squads This is a list of the complete squads for the 2017 Six Nations Championship, an annual rugby union tournament contested by the national rugby teams of England, France, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales. England are the defending champions. Note: Number of caps and players' ages are indicated as of 4 February 2017 – the tournament's opening day. On 20 January, head coach Eddie Jones named a 35-man squad. Head coach: Eddie Jones On 20 February, Mako Vunipola returned to the squad following injury while Henry Slade was an addition to the team ahead of Italy.
Rugby union in Italy first win against a home nation, against Ireland in Treviso, in a Rugby World Cup warm up. In 1999, the domestic competition ran its 100th tournament, with Benetton Treviso winning the championship that year. In 2000, Italy joined the Five Nations Championships, turning the competition into the Six Nations Championship. In both the 2007 Six Nations and the 2013 Six Nations , Italy finished fourth, their best placing yet. The Italian national rugby union side have been playing international rugby since the late 1920s, and are categorized, by the International Rugby Board, as a tier one nation. They have competed