Calvisano Front Up

Giampiero De Carli leads Calvisano out against Perpignan on Saturday evening wary of the French club's forward firepower.

Calvisano - who lost by just nine points against Celtic Warriors and picked up a try bonus point in their defeat by London Wasps - face back-to-back contests with last season's Heineken Cup finalists lifted by yesterday's (Sunday 4 January) 30-13 away win over Overmach Parma.

"That was an important win in the Italian Championship so now we can concentrate fully on our two matches against Perpignan," said Italian prop De Carli.

"All Heineken Cup games are incredibly challenging and these games against Perpignan will be no different. Perpignan are strong up front and behind the scrum and Stade Aime Giral is not an easy place to go.

"Having said that, we put in two good performances against the Celtic Warriors and the London Wasps and we want to maintain that rhythm in order to compete in the rest of our games.

"We were pleased with our wins over Neath and away at Beziers last season but our Pool really is very tough this year.

"Perpignan are a very well prepared side and our initial objective will be to contain their forward pack. Whatever the result, we will do our very best to play to the best of our ability."

Calvisano turned heads last seasons with two Heineken Cup wins but De Carli believes a regional rugby structure is the only way forward for Italian rugby.

"We have closed the gap on the rest of Europe to some extent but there is still a long way to go and that is clearly seen when we come up against some of the English and French sides. I think a provincial structure is necessary in Italy if we are to progress further - we need to do what the Celtic nations have done and pool our strengths and resources in order to be competitive."