'It's an exciting time, it's a frustrating time' - As Italy continue to improve, so does everyone else

Italy are uniquely positioned in international rugby, although not in a good way.

They're sitting at the top table, but they're still eating scraps.

Ever since they entered the expanded Six Nations back in 2000, they've been stuck in that nowhere zone; a considerable distance off the pace of their opponents, while being far too good for the better sides in the Rugby Europe Championship.

Year on year, as they rack up wooden spoons (16 out of 22) and see defeats pile up (34 in a row and counting), the same question is asked of tournament organisers: When will we see promotion and relegation?

As it always is, it was asked of Six Nations CEO Ben Morel at this year's launch, and you could have written his answer before he even spoke.

"No. It's not on the current agenda. But we understand there needs to be a pathway for emerging nations to elite rugby," he said, somewhat predictably.

The answer is predictable because of the protection Italy have, which was only highlighted by last week's kite-flying mission that they could be replaced by South Africa in the coming years, a report dismissed by organisers last Friday.

Given the cosy relationships between the six national unions, it's highly unlikely for Italy to be turfed out, and so the conversation moves on. What can they do to improve, and when can they do it by?

There have been corners turned in the past, such as 2003 and 2004 when they picked up wins and avoided the wooden spoon, or their run from 2011 to 2013 when they beat France twice as well as Ireland, finishing fourth in the championship under the coaching of Jacques Brunel.

But their rise has always coincided with someone else's fall, and once France and Scotland began to gather themselves in recent seasons, Italy have