The 2018 Six Nations Championship saw Italy gain their first table point since 2015, with a losers bonus point being earned in the final round when Italy lost to Scotland 29–27. The other matches, saw Italy not only fail to gain a victory, but were also denied a losers and try bonus point, losing 46–15 to England, 56–19 to Ireland, 34–17 to France and 38–14 to Wales. In June 2018, O'Shea took Italy on a two-test series against Japan. The series ended in a 1–1 draw, after losing the first test 34–17, but brought the series level in the second test with a 25–22 victory.