ROME (Reuters) - Scotland narrowly avoided a nightmare end to their Six Nations campaign on Saturday, beating Italy 29-27 with a Greig Laidlaw penalty a minute from time after trailing the perennial wooden-spooners for most of the game.
Scotland scored four tries before snatching victory from the distraught Italians but the result could well have gone the other way, with an expectant home crowd of 60,000 on the verge of celebrating a first Six Nations victory in three years.
Scotland broke the Azzurri's resistance in the final 10 minutes with a try by full-back Stuart Hogg and the deciding penalty by scrumhalf Laidlaw, whose kick drove the stake into Italian hearts with a minute left on the clock.
The visitors had scored three tries through hooker Fraser Brown, captain John Barclay and winger Sean Maitland, but they were well off the form that carried them to victory against England three weeks ago, especially in the first half.
"We found a way to win," Barclay said. "It was tough out there but we were calm and we stepped it up."
Italy, who last won a Six Nations game against Scotland in 2015 in Rome, led for about an hour, steered by 24-year-old flyhalf Tommaso Allan, the man of the match who scored two tries and set up a third for fullback Matteo Minozzi.
"I am destroyed for them, the players," Italy's Irish coach Conor O'Shea said after the game, attributing the loss mainly to a lack of experience required to close out the game.
"Boy, we played some rugby out there today."
O'Shea also showed frustration at French referee Pascal Gauzere, and Italy were denied a try to flanker Sebastian Negri after a video review showed an earlier knock-on.
Scotland have finished in the top three only three times since Italy joined the competition in 2000, but their win in Rome in the first of Saturday's games could get them third place after they ended their campaign with 13 points.
AWAY VICTORY
It was also a rare away victory for Scotland who had won only two of their past 19 Six Nations games on the road.
Scotland coach Gregor Townsend described the game and the entire Six Nations season as a rollercoaster.
"We have a long way to go to reach our potential but it's been a good experience with the players to get three wins in such a competitive championship ... but we want to do better than that, we want to build on what we've done this year."
Italy were already guaranteed to finish last for the 13th time since their first Six Nations. Their string of 17 straight defeats in the competition equals the worst losing streak in the northern hemisphere's premier tournament since France racked up 17 losses a century ago between 1911 and 1920.
However, Italy under O'Shea have shifted from their traditionally forwards-dominated game towards a riskier, expansive style of rugby led by a new generation of players such as Allan and Minozzi, one of the tournament's leading try-scorers.
Italy are also looking to even younger players - their Under-20s Six Nations side beat Wales and Scotland this season.
"We are coming," O'Shea said.
(Reporting by Mark Bendeich; Editing by Ken Ferris and Ed Osmond)
