It did not take long for the home supporters to start celebrating as lock Marie Louise Reilly barged her way through for the first try on five minutes. Niamh Briggs converted and she would add two further penalties in the half.

Just nine minutes later and Ireland were threatening to really cut loose as former captain Joy Neville put through local girl Kavanagh on the right.

Neville got in on the act herself just before the half-hour mark with Italy paying the price for not getting the ball away quickly enough.

The Italians though showed commendable spirit as they came back into the game as Ireland had two players sent to the sin-bin with tthe visitors responding through a converted Cristina Molic try to leave them trailing by 14 points.

That deficit was further reduced through a Michela Tondinelli drop goal in the visitors' best spell of the half.

But Ireland's superior fitness told as the game entered the final quarter as Alison Miller's good work laid the platform for scrum-half Amy Davis to get the fourth try that would kill off the game as a contest.

Against tiring Italian legs, Kavanagh got her second and replacement Jennifer Murphy rounded off the scoring with her side's sixth try to give the scoreline a flattering gloss.