Greig Laidlaw’s last-gasp penalty ensured Scotland avoided a final-day slip-up as they edged out Italy 29-27 in Rome.
Victory ends the Dark Blues’ two-year wait for a NatWest 6 Nations away win and ensures a campaign that started off with so much expectation did not finish with a whimper.
Having suffered defeat in both Cardiff and Dublin, the Scots were under pressure to prove they could come up with the goods on foreign soil.
And they just about managed it as Fraser Brown, John Barclay, Sean Maitland and Stuart Hogg all crossed before Laidlaw’s 88th-minute kick sealed their first bonus-point win.
Tweet of the match
Star man – Tommaso Allan
He may have finished on the losing side but the former Scotland under-20 international was at the heart of everything good from the Italians as he marshalled his backline brilliantly, scored two tries and added 12 with the boot.
Moment of the match
Tommaso Allan’s second try. Just moments after Sebastian Negri had a try chalked off for a knock-on in the build-up, Italy capitalised on yet more poor tackling from Scotland. Jake Polledri was immense for the Italians and just ran through Ryan Wilson, brushed off Laidlaw before off-loading to Allan, who had a simple task to touch down.
Away-day blues
Scotland may have got out of jail in the last two minutes but their form away from Murrayfield is a problem that Gregor Townsend will need to fix quickly. The Scots have not won away except Rome since the final round of the 2010 championship when they beat Ireland in Dublin. They have won just six games – four in Italy – since the tournament became the Six Nations in 2000. Their other victory came in Wales in 2002.
Shaky defence
Scotland could have been dead and buried early in the second half if a couple of knock-ons from Sergio Parisse had not saved them. The root of their problems came from missed tackles that kept them on the back foot. Italy were running riot after constantly breaking the defensive line and if Townsend can fix that he will go a long way to rectifying Scotland’s travelling issues.
Who’s up next?
Japan v Italy, Saturday, June 9.
Canada v Scotland, Saturday, June 9.
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