After being denied at the death in Saint-Denis last weekend, betting sites are liking the chances of Australia issuing an immediate and swift response against Italy at Stadio Artemio Franchi this Saturday.

The Florence venue is the setting for the Wallabies’ third test during this autumn window.

Thus far it has been a positive period for Dave Rennie, as he aims to bolster his side’s prospects in advance of a hectic 2023.

Australia Just Miss Out On French Victory

At Murrayfield Stadium on October 29, a final-quarter scoring burst helped Australia to edge out Scotland on a final scoreline of 16-15. 

The southern hemisphere giants had looked set to continue on a winning trajectory seven days later when the combination of a Jock Campbell try and penalties courtesy of both Bernard Foley and Reece Hodge had them four points in front (29-25) with just five minutes remaining on the clock.

However, Damian Penaud touched down in the closing stages of the action to ensure Six Nations champions France had the bare minimum to spare in a thrilling contest.

There was considerable heartbreak in the Australian camp following this defeat, but it is important to put the result in context. 

Despite being ranked second in the world at the moment, many see Les Bleus as the favourites in the Rugby World Cup betting.

Courtesy of five wins from five in the spring, France not only came away with the Six Nations crown, but a Grand Slam to go alongside it.

In the summer, the French embarked on their first-ever tour of Japan and subsequently emerged with a 2-0 series win.

This meant Fabien Galthié’s side were brimming with confidence coming into the autumn internationals and while Australia already had a game under their belts, France did just enough to remain unbeaten in 2022.

Italians Showing Some Green Shoots

Their forthcoming opponents Italy are very often on the opposite end of the spectrum, but the Azzurri are much more sure-footed under the guidance of New Zealander Kieran Crowley.

At the end of this year’s Six Nations, Italy secured a dramatic victory over Wales to claim their first win in the tournament in all of 36 games. 

From there, they played Portugal, Romania and Georgia on a tour of Europe - winning two tests and losing one to the Georgians.

They enjoyed a productive start to this year’s autumn internationals, however as Pierre Bruno and Monty Ioane both bagged a brace of tries in a 49-17 triumph at the expense of Samoa in Padua last Saturday.

Former Canada and Benetton head coach Crowley is certainly getting the very best out of his troops, but history isn’t on their side coming into Saturday’s game.

Wallabies Expected To Overcome Azzurri Challenge

Italy have lost all 18 of their tests against Australia to date and online rugby betting sites are backing them to preserve their own 100% record in this fixture by rating the Wallabies as 1.1 favourites to secure the spoils in Florence.

While they are being given a better chance than some other underdogs who will be strutting their stuff this weekend, Italy remain firm 6.0 outsiders with Unibet on their home patch in the early hours of Saturday morning.

Meanwhile, the odds available on the contest ending in a stalemate stand at an unlikely 34.0.

Australia Will Look To Come Through With Points To Spare

Even though Italy are capable of causing Australia problems, the latter are still expected to come through the game with flying colours. 

Bet365 are presenting odds of 6.5 on the Wallabies winning by between 16 and 20 points and 7.0 on a margin of 21 to 25 points.

The same bookmakers has 9.0 on Italy pulling off a shock win of between 1 to 5 points as well as a whopping 41.0 on the Azzurri triumphing by 11 to 15 points.

Since first taking charge of the side in October 2020, it is safe to say that the aforementioned Dave Rennie’s record as Wallabies coach has been decidedly mixed. 

To date, the former Wellington player has registered 12 wins, three draws and 16 losses from 31 international tests.

Southern Hemisphere Men Have Claimed Some Big Scalps

To have more defeats than victories is something that wouldn’t sit well with Rennie, though there have been some notable results during his tenure to date.

Under his watch, Australia have secured three wins over South Africa, two against France and one each at the expense of New Zealand and England. 

This means the Wallabies have overcome four of the top-five ranked nations in world rugby with a test away to number one side Ireland coming up on November 19.

Given he took over from Michael Cheika at the end of the last World Cup cycle, Rennie will more than likely be judged by how he does at next year’s finals in France. 

They are currently in line to be the highest-ranked team in their World Cup pool, despite dropping down to seventh as a consequence of their defeat to France.

The best way to show they are the side to beat in a five-team group that will also include Wales, Fiji, Georgia and a yet-to-be-determined final qualifier is to win games on a more consistent basis and that starts this Saturday in Florence.