The wait from Round 2 to 3 in the Six Nations always feels longer off the back of a defeat.
Ireland's loss to France in Paris a fortnight ago wasn't necessarily heartbreaking or season-defining; aside from the few days of hysterics around whether or not they should have attacked the tryline rather than called for the tee with that 72nd-minute penalty, the analysis that followed was largely balanced.
On one side of the scales there were some promising individual performances, notably Mack Hansen, Joey Carbery, Tadhg Beirne and Dan Sheehan, as well as Ireland's ability to stick with their game plan and find alternative routes to the French tryline in spite of their lack of power.
The other side of the scales - the one that tipped the balance - contains an ill-disciplined first half and a scrum that struggled with the beefy French forwards. The negatives outweighed the positives, but enough was learned to render the trip to Paris worthwhile.
It was one of those nights and one of those finishes where the players would have been desperate to get back out onto the pitch for Round 3 last weekend.
The schedule has been kind to Ireland this year though.
With a week's rest following what will probably be their toughest physical challenge away to France, this weekend sees Italy (Aviva Stadium, 3pm) come to town before another week off leading into their other big away trip to Twickenham.
Having a week off either side of their two away trips, particularly when they are France and England, is a luxury that has afforded Andy Farrell the chance to rotate his squad.
It came as a surprise that he made six changes from the defeat in France, although some have been enforced.
An adductor issue for James Ryan has seen him drop out, while Bundee Aki and Andrew Conway have also had "a few niggles" and "aches and pains" in the last week, according to Farrell.
Were it England rather than Italy visiting the Aviva Stadium, it's likely they'd have been risked.
With Johnny Sexton fit again, the logical call sees him eased back to action off the bench, with the best of both worlds achieved as Carbery is rewarded for his excellent display in Paris with a second Six Nations start.
There are also some very deliberate calls made in both the starting team and replacements bench, with an eye towards the 2023 World Cup.
After 18 starts on the spin and 14 of them coming at full-back, Hugo Keenan has been asked to share the No 15 jersey with Ulster's Mike Lowry, who dazzled for Dan McFarland's side in their four-out-of-four Heineken Champions Cup pool.
His turn of pace and fondness for a counter-attack makes Italy an ideal first cap for the 23-year-old, and with Lowry sitting in between wingers Mack Hansen and James Lowe, it's as instinctive a back three that Ireland have picked in a long time.
Hansen's role will be interesting as he shifts from the 11 to 14 jersey as Lowe returns to the left wing, a position Ireland have handed an almost free role to in both November and the early rounds of the Six Nations.
In total, eight of the matchday 23 have played fewer than ten Test matches, as Farrell looks to see more from Craig Casey, James Hume and Kieran Treadwell off the bench, with Treadwell making his first Irish appearance in more than four years.
While Farrell is taking a chance with some of his inexperienced players, there can be no excuses for a drop in standards against Italy.
The Azzurri's stats line doesn't exactly look daunting.
If you weren't aware Kieran Crowley's side had lost 34 games in a row in the tournament, it's likely you have avoided any rugby discourse in the past three weeks.
For an added milestone, a defeat to Ireland would bring up their century of losses in the championship, with just 12 wins and a draw in their previous 112 games in the tournament.
And while their long wait for a win keeps rumbling on, it's worth noting the schedule hasn't been kind to them this year, with France away, followed by England in their opening two games.
They weren't in contention to win either, losing 37-10 and 33-0 respectively, but they caused problems and created their moments in both.
Their winless run is taking place as they bottom out and start the rebuild, with the current squad full of young, skilful footballers, a departure from the days when Italy could bruise you up front but rarely cut you out wide.
In Paolo Garbisi they have the out-half they can build a team around for a decade, 21 years old and playing at the highest level with Montpellier in the French Top14.
They've gone through rebuilds before, but this one seems to be starting from a lower floor, and potentially hitting a higher ceiling. Thirteen of their matchday squad are 25-years-old or younger, including their captain Michele Lamaro at flanker who is just 23.
Alongside Garbisi is Gloucester's 20-year-old scrummie Stephen Varney, a half-back pairing that are being given the next decade to grow up together.
Another 20-year-old, Leandro Marin, is handed a third cap and first start at inside centre, with the Benetton prospect also a capable out-half, with head coach Crowley looking to get a second distributor and kicker into the team.
The problem is the here and now. While they showed flashes in the opening rounds, not least the wonderful debut try for 19-year-old Tommaso Menoncello, their lack of size and experience has been ruthlessly exposed.
It's evident by Varney leading the tournament in handling errors, with eight across two matches, highlighting just how difficult opposition forwards are making life for Italy when the Azzurri have the ball.
Unfortunately, it could be midway through the next World Cup cycle before we know whether or not this Italy team are capable of sustaining both performances and results.
For now their main goal is to end a historically bad run of form.
"The thing is, in many championships, the number of points you put up against Italy can dictate who wins the championship," Donal Lenihan said on this week's RTÉ Rugby podcast.
"So many championships go down to points differential. We all remember the super Saturdays we had when tries one way or the other made the difference between winning and losing a championship."
With France scoring 37 and England 33 against the Italians in the opening rounds, Ireland will quietly be targeting north of 40 points to keep themselves looking healthy on the points difference.
But if they can tap into the ruthlessness they showed in attack last November, when they flexed their muscles against Japan and Argentina, Ireland can get back on track in style, before resting up ahead of the trip to Twickenham.
Verdict: Ireland bonus-point win
Ireland: Michael Lowry; Mack Hansen, Garry Ringrose, Robbie Henshaw, James Lowe; Joey Carbery, Jamison Gibson-Park; Andrew Porter, Dan Sheehan, Tadhg Furlong; Tadhg Beirne, Ryan Baird, Peter O'Mahony (c), Josh van der Flier, Caelan Doris
Replacements: Rob Herring, Dave Kilcoyne, Finlay Bealham, Kieran Treadwell, Jack Conan, Craig Casey, Johnny Sexton, James Hume
Italy: Edoardo Padovani; Pierre Bruno, Ignacio Brex, Leonardo Marin, Monty Ioane; Paolo Garbisi, Stephen Varney; Danillo Fischetti, Gianmarco Lucchesi, Pietro Ceccarelli; Niccolo Cannone, Federico Ruzza; Giovanni Pettinelli, Michele Lamaro (c), Toa Halafihi
Replacements: Epalahame Faiva, Ivan Nemer, Tiziano Pasquali, David Sisi, Manuel Zuliani, Braam Steyn, Alessandro Fusco, Marco Zanon
Referee: Nika Amashukeli (GEO)
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