Here are your rugby morning headlines for Saturday, February 8.

Italy question respect

Italy captain Michele Lamaro has questioned whether Wales and the other Six Nations teams truly respect the Italians yet. Italy have beaten Wales in two of their last three Six Nations meetings, but lost last time they faced Warren Gatland's side in Rome.

"It's always difficult to say if we have respect of other nations," Lamaro said on Friday.

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"I think the way teams prepare for our games has changed but I'm pretty sure in the back of their minds, they think Italian rugby is still not at the same level as theirs.

"We can use that as motivation and have 80 minutes to get credibility and respect back. Saying that, I'm not sure it's ever been there.

"Yes, teams fear us on a one-off occasion but respect is different against countries with such big rugby traditions and cultures."

Lamaro's comments come a year after he told an Italian newspaper he felt his team were shown a lack of respect when they faced Wales in Cardiff last year, with "several small, unpleasant situations unworthy of a host country" allegedly unfolding during their visit. Speaking to Gazzetta dello Sport, he claimed that Italy's pre-match warm-up was cut short and that family members were given seats in the corner of the ground with reduced visibility. He added that family members were also unable to attend the post-match function.

The WRU and Italian Rugby Federation moved quickly to clarify the situation, with Lamaro's accusations wide of the mark.

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Shaun Edwards reveals job he'd 'love'

Former Wales defence coach Shaun Edwards says he remains open-minded about which job he takes next, but revealed he would "love" to coach New Zealand.

The 58-year-old's contract with France will see him stay with Les Bleus until 2027, and he has ambitions of heading to the southern hemisphere.

"My priority, my absolute and total concentration until my contract finishes, is the French team," Edwards told The i. "I want to stay in the Six Nations for as long as possible. But who knows what the future holds. No-one knows.

"Another ambition I have is I’d love to coach the All Blacks. I always got on well with the New Zealand guys when I was playing for Wigan – men like Tony Iro, Dean Bell, and Va’aiga Tuigamala, who heartbreakingly has passed away now. New Zealand is a rugby country. It’s good to be in an environment of rugby up there challenging football.

"The Springboks are the same. Very much a rugby orientated place. I’d listen to any offers I got from them."

France head to Twickenham to take on England this evening after thumping Wales on the opening weekend in a huge game in the context of the tournament as a whole.

And Edwards says the prospect of silverware is what drives him now and, should France be successful with him on the coaching ticket, he'd be willing to stay with Les Bleus long term.

"I have never reneged on a contract in my whole coaching career, for 24 years as a coach," he added. "And I’d be very open to staying with France. One of my daughters has lived in France longer than she’s lived in England.

"Both my daughters speak English and French. But you have to win things first."

Welsh regions train against each other

Cardiff and the Scarlets came together for a training session to counteract the reduced numbers in their squads during this Six Nations.

The Welsh capital city team welcomed their west Wales counterparts to the Arms Park yesterday afternoon to go toe to toe in training in a bid to up numbers.

Both regions have a number of players away with the Wales squad preparing for the Italy clash this afternoon, however the two regional teams took the opportunity to take part in a competitive session together in Cardiff.

In photos posted on social media, the two packs can be seen contesting lineouts and packing down against each other in the scrum, too.

The two sides are not in action for another week, with Cardiff travelling to Connacht on February 15 and Munster welcoming Scarlets on the same day in the URC.

Wales international calls Gatland decision 'mind boggling'

Former Wales international Dafydd James has called the decision to omit Tommy Reffell from the squad to face Italy "mind-boggling".

As ever in international rugby, given the calibre of players there are always going to be tough selection calls for Warren Gatland and Co.

The Wales head coach has opted for a back-row of captain Jac Morgan, veteran Taulupe Faletau and Cardiff Rugby's James Botham, while the bench options are the versatile Aaron Wainwright and Freddie Thomas, who can operate in the second- and back-row.

Gatland appears to have opted for a more potent carrying threat with his back-row decisions, meaning he has had to leave out breakdown specialist Reffell, who came off the bench in the drubbing in Paris last weekend.

"Not sure how Gatland can leave Reffell out of the squad (23). It's mind boggling," former Wales and Lions wing James wrote on social media. "He was a dynamo and was a thorn in the side at ruck time. Turnover king."

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Dupont glad not to be facing club team-mate Willis

By Duncan Bech, PA England Rugby Correspondent

Antoine Dupont is delighted he will not be facing Toulouse team-mate Jack Willis on Saturday in comments that call into question England's refusal to pick overseas-based players.

Dupont leads France into their Guinness Six Nations showdown at Allianz Stadium where he will be looking to kill off the hosts' title aspirations by clinching a fourth successive victory in the fixture.

The world's best player believes the goal has been made easier by England's rule of only selecting players from the Gallagher Premiership, denying them access to the likes of Joe Marchant, Henry Arundell and Willis.

Willis' move to Toulouse in 2022 has been an unqualified success and he is contracted to the Top 14 and Champions Cup double winners until 2029.

When asked about England overlooking their star competing in France, Dupont said: "I'm a bit surprised, but I'm quite happy not to be playing against Jack. We know the nightmare he is in the ruck area.

"Their rules are different from ours and it's like that for the moment. I don't think they will change it soon."

England have rolled the dice for the round two fixture by giving Fin Smith his full debut at fly-half and moving Marcus Smith to full-back, changes they hope will ignite their attack.

The playmakers, both traditional 10s, finished last Saturday's 27-22 defeat by Ireland in those positions and Dupont fears Marcus Smith will be a big threat running from deep.

"It went rather well at the end of the game against Ireland, with Marcus Smith at full-back. It went well against us last year when he came on early," Dupont said.

"We know his quality, with the ball in his hands and that he is able to create overlaps in almost any situation. He's a threat whether he's a 10 or a 15.

"There will be another number 10 on the pitch to drive the game. They will surely want to keep the ball. It will be up to us to adapt."

Townsend plays down Scotland-Ireland rivalry

By Anthony Brown, PA

Gregor Townsend dismissed any notion that Scotland versus Ireland has become a grudge match ahead of Sunday's Guinness Six Nations showdown between the sides at Murrayfield.

The Scots have lost each of their last 10 meetings against the Irish - including two World Cup pool-stage fixtures - in a run stretching back to February 2017.

A perception has developed that Ireland take particular delight from putting Townsend's men in their place whenever they are deemed to be talking bullishly about their prospects of ending a hoodoo now spanning eight years.

Asked if he detected a more intense rivalry between the sides in recent times, the Scotland head coach said: "I don't think there is. Well, if there is, it's just the same as any other game where teams want to build up something to provide extra motivation.

"So maybe it's more on the Irish side, or the Irish media side, that there's this rivalry or needle to give them extra motivation on why they want to win again.

"Obviously they've won this fixture a number of times but we see this as a game where we respect Ireland a lot and admire what they've done over the last few years, but it doesn't stand out as a needle game for us."

Townsend - who took charge four months after Scotland's last win over the Irish - insisted he will not be making a big play of trying to smash the hoodoo during his team-talks because he does not believe it is particularly relevant to most of the players in his squad.

"I think you only lean into it once you've ended it," he said. "Honestly, I think it's not something that our players talk about, we talk about our recent experiences against Ireland and why we weren't able to play our best or what they did, how it's shaped us and how we play now.

"I don't think any - well, maybe one or two - players have been here throughout the eight years. It's more your recent experiences and our most recent experiences are last week's game (against Italy) and the two training sessions we've had this week, that's what fills the minds of the players as we go into the game."

Townsend, whose side started with a 31-19 win at home to Italy, acknowledged Scotland are underdogs for Sunday's match.

"Ireland are a top side and they have been for a number of years, clearly favourites for this game and looking to win three Six Nations in a row, which would be unprecedented," he said.

"All credit to them, they've worked hard to be one of the top teams in the world and they've kept that going over the last couple of years."