Italy eyes Gower, warts'n'all

Gower, who has an Italian grandfather, expressed his desire to represent the Azzurri after switching codes to join French club side Bayonne last year. But the former Penrith captain's poor disciplinary record in Australia initially deterred Mallett, the former Springboks coach.

Mallett initially turned to Wikipedia to research Gower, and was aghast to note the majority of the Australian's profile fell under the sub-category, "Controversy", detailing his numerous brushes with officialdom in Australia.

The Azzurri coach feared Gower could prove a destabilising influence in the Italian side, but has since softened his stance.

Still, he will seek assurances from the Australian playmaker before considering him for international duties.

"I had a look through Wikipedia, and he's obviously had a very chequered past," Mallett told the Herald .

"He seemed to have been in a lot of trouble in rugby league, and his disciplinary record didn't look good at all.

"That didn't inspire much confidence from our end.

"I think what we would need to see from him was that he'd undergone a complete character change since then before we'd bring him into the Italian set-up.

"Here in Italy, we don't have the best players in the world, so the only way we can compete as a team is to have a tight unit.

"We can't afford to have any loose cannons in our team.

"If he can prove to me that his disciplinary problems are in the past and that he's happy to fit into a team environment, I would be absolutely interested in bringing him on board. If not, then I would be happier to go with a younger Italian-born player."

Mallett was first made aware of Gower's eligibility towards the end of this year's Six Nations campaign; a tournament in which Italy's lack of quality in the halves was brutally exposed. Gower's quick hands, sound tactical kicking and previous international experience - albeit in rugby league - would appear to match the job vacancy Italy so desperately need to fill.

To allay his concerns about the 30-year-old's previous behavioural issues, Mallett contacted Bayonne officials, and dispatched Italian scouts to watch him play in the French Top 14 competition.

The reports on Gower were positive, leading Mallett to hint that the Australian - who played 238 games for Penrith and 14 for Australia during his rugby league career - could be called into the Italian squad for next year's Six Nations.

"I would be keen to get him to camp and see what kind of person he is," Mallett said.

"We are not in a position here to discount good rugby players. I would like to sit down with him and say, 'This is what I expect from you'. If he's willing to be a team player and try and learn the language, there could be opportunities.

"[Five-eighth] is one spot on the field where we need to look at our options. Clearly, he is a very good rugby player, and he seems to have been successful in starting a new career."

Gower, for his part, is keen to convince Mallett that he has turned a new leaf.

"[The Wikipedia entry] might not make for good reading, but that's all behind me now," Gower said. "I'm dead keen to play Test rugby, and I am looking forward to letting Nick know just that."

Should he claim the Azzurri No.10 jersey, Gower would effectively be playing out of position, given that Bayonne prefer to play him at inside-centre. That, however, should not deter the Italians, who are currently experimenting with another Australian, Luke McLean, at five-eighth.

McLean, formerly of Perth Spirit in the Australian Rugby Championship, plays fullback for his club side, Calvisano, and has been selected for Italy's series of matches against Australia, Argentina and the Pacific Islands in November.

"We're just about to start our first camp of the season, and we're still very much in the formation period," Mallett said. "The [five-eighth] area has been difficult, because there aren't many Italian players of quality playing either here or overseas."