Ireland seal back-to-back Six Nations titles after victory over Scotland

Ireland made it back-to-back Six Nations title triumphs after securing a hard-fought 17-13 victory over a rugged Scotland at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin on Saturday.

Coming into the game on the back of a shock loss to England, the Irish regrouped and ground out the win thanks to tries from front-row duo Dan Sheehan and Andrew Porter.

Jack Crowley added seven points off the kicking tee against a steely Scotland side who while struggled with ball in hand, put in a formidable defensive showing on the road.

Scotland’s only try of the match came late on through Huw Jones, with Finn Russell kicking a conversion and two penalties as they finish with three defeats and two wins.

Andy Farrell’s hosts were well below their free-flowing best in Dublin but avoided any major ‘Super Saturday’ drama to retain the championship title.

Underdogs Scotland crossed the Irish Sea with a slender chance of snatching the title but realistically seeking to secure a first Triple Crown since 1990 following a chastening round-four loss to Italy.

Their mission to rip up the script began in positive fashion thanks to an early Russell penalty before Sheehan was gifted his fifth try of the tournament by George Turner’s overthrown lineout.

The fortunate 13th-minute score, converted by Crowley, did little to settle Irish nerves and the fired-up Scots kept up the pressure with another three points from Russell’s boot.

Farrell’s men were struggling to gain meaningful territory during a cagey opening period punctuated with errors and frequent kicking exchanges amid a subdued atmosphere.

Crowley squandered a long-range penalty to stretch the slender advantage as resolute Scotland remained relatively untroubled, while offering a threat on the counter attack.

Ireland, who had been forced to replace injured full-back Hugo Keenan with Jordan Larmour just before kick-off, trudged down the tunnel leading by only a single point and with major room for improvement.

Scotland head coach Gregor Townsend acknowledged pre-match that his side needed to produce “something special” to spoil the Irish party and bounce back from a dismal display in Rome.

Crowley made their uphill task slightly harder with a straightforward penalty before the visitors received a major reprieve when Tadhg Furlong’s apparent touch down was chalked off following a lengthy review as referee Matthew Carley deemed the ball had been dislodged.

Heroic last-ditch defending was the only thing preventing a rampant home side showing renewed purpose from fully taking control of the contest.

Scotland flanker Andy Christie superbly halted the weaving Calvin Nash with the try-line in touching distance before rusty Ireland replacement Garry Ringrose inexplicably fumbled.

Ringrose, making his first appearance of the tournament following a shoulder injury, atoned with a lung-busting intercept run which led to Ireland’s crucial second try.

Robbie Henshaw was adjudged to have been held up on the line in the immediate aftermath before Porter subsequently powered over from a tap-and-go penalty following a yellow card for Ewan Ashman.

Supporters responded with a rousing rendition of the Fields of Athenry, fully believing the job was done.

However, home fans were forced to endure a nervy final couple of minutes after replacement fly-half Harry Byrne was sin binned for a head-on-head challenge on Russell and Scotland centre Jones broke clear to touch down.

Ireland duly avoided any further issues to jubilantly celebrate a fifth Six Nations title in 11 years ― and sixth overall ― to underline their status as the northern hemisphere’s leading nation.

The teams

Ireland:  15 Jordan Larmour, 14 Calvin Nash, 13 Robbie Henshaw, 12 Bundee Aki, 11 James Lowe, 10 Jack Crowley, 9 Jamison Gibson-Park, 8 Caelan Doris, 7 Josh van der Flier, 6 Peter O’Mahony (c), 5 Tadhg Beirne, 4 Joe McCarthy, 3 Tadhg Furlong, 2 Dan Sheehan, 1 Andrew Porter
Replacements:  16 Rónan Kelleher, 17 Cian Healy, 18 Finlay Bealham, 19 Ryan Baird, 20 Jack Conan, 21 Conor Murray, 22 Harry Byrne, 23 Garry Ringrose

Scotland:  15 Blair Kinghorn, 14 Kyle Steyn, 13 Huw Jones, 12 Stafford McDowall, 11 Duhan van der Merwe, 10 Finn Russell (cc), 9 Ben White, 8 Jack Dempsey, 7 Rory Darge (cc), 6 Andy Christie, 5 Scott Cummings, 4 Grant Gilchrist, 3 Zander Fagerson, 2 George Turner, 1 Pierre Schoeman
Replacements:  16 Ewan Ashman, 17 Rory Sutherland, 18 Elliot Millar-Mills, 19 Sam Skinner, 20 Matt Fagerson, 21 George Horne, 22 Cameron Redpath, 23 Kyle Rowe

Referee:  Matthew Carley (England)
Assistant Referees:  Karl Dickson (England), Christophe Ridley (England)
TMO:  Marius Jonker (South Africa)

Thomas Ramos helps France edge England in seven-try Six Nations thriller

A late Thomas Ramos penalty helped France win a thrilling Six Nations clash with England 33-31 in a result that sees them finish the 2024 campaign in second spot.

With less than a minute remaining, the Les Bleus fly-half stepped up from the halfway line and succeeded in nudging his side into the lead before they saw out the game.

France had earlier scored tries via Nolann Le Garrec, Leo Barre and Gael Fickou, with Ramos finishing with 18 points off the tee, missing just one of his eight attempts.

While coming out on the losing side, England will take plenty from the game as their four tries were scored by Ollie Lawrence (2), Marcus Smith and Tommy Freeman.

Ireland may already have clinched the Six Nations title by toppling Scotland but if evidence was needed that this match still mattered it came when Ramos kicked off before the countdown had even begun.

Once the false start had been dealt with, England were greeted with waves of attacks and a challenging opening was compounded when George Furbank departed with a calf injury and was replaced by Smith.

George Ford drew first blood through a penalty and his side were successfully slowing down play to stem the blue tide but there was no stopping the stunning end to end move began by Fickou and finished by Le Garrec.

England were in danger of being swept aside as they scrambled furiously to stop a second long-range strike but a sizeable lead opened up when Ramos kicked his second penalty.

Wing Damian Penaud beat a host of tackles yet made no metres in a crabbing run but it resulted in another opportunity for Ramos and he found the posts once more.

England showed their mettle, however, when Lawrence ran through Fickou on the cusp of half-time for a vitally important try that reduced the interval deficit to 16-10.

And there was better to come as a sweeping move given impetus by big runs from Sam Underhill and Ben Earl ended with a second try for Lawrence.

In a remarkable turn of events, England were now breaking through the home defence at will as Underhill and Earl combined a second time to create the opening before Smith arrived to score.

France now found their second wind and when their opponents eventually ran out of bodies in defence, they crossed through Barre to make it a one-point game heading into the final quarter.

With control restored, the 2023 World Cup hosts conjured a third try by Fickou that was born out of Theo Dan’s line-out overthrow.

But there was yet another twist as England staged a well-constructed attack that led to an overlap, providing a simple run in for Freeman.

Yet, with the Test seemingly won, up stepped Ramos to decide otherwise.

The teams

France:  15 Leo Barre, 14 Damian Penaud, 13 Gaël Fickou, 12 Nicolas Depoortere, 11 Louis Bielle-Biarrey, 10 Thomas Ramos, 9 Nolann Le Garrec, 8 Gregory Alldritt (c), 7 Charles Ollivon, 6 François Cros, 5 Emmanuel Meafou, 4 Thibaud Flament, 3 Uini Atonio, 2 Julien Marchand, 1 Cyril Baille
Replacements:  16 Peato Mauvaka, 17 Sebastien Taofifenua, 18 Georges-Henri Colombe, 19 Romain Taofifenua, 20 Alexandre Roumat, 21 Paul Boudehent, 22 Maxime Lucu, 23 Yoram Moefana

England:  15 George Furbank, 14 Tommy Freeman, 13 Henry Slade, 12 Ollie Lawrence, 11 Elliot Daly, 10 George Ford, 9 Alex Mitchell, 8 Ben Earl, 7 Sam Underhill, 6 Ollie Chessum, 5 George Martin, 4 Maro Itoje, 3 Dan Cole, 2 Jamie George (c), 1 Ellis Genge
Replacements:  16 Theo Dan, 17 Joe Marler, 18 Will Stuart, 19 Ethan Roots, 20 Alex Dombrandt, 21 Danny Care, 22 Marcus Smith, 23 Manu Tuilagi

Referee:  Angus Gardner (Australia)
Assistant Referees:  Nika Amashukeli (Georgia), Damian Schneider (Argentina)
TMO:  Ben Whitehouse (Wales)

Italy repeat Cardiff heroics as Wales handed Six Nations Wooden Spoon

Wales suffered a first winless campaign in 21 years as a 24-21 loss to an impressive Italy outfit in Cardiff condemned Saturday’s hosts to bottom spot in the Six Nations.

For the Azzurri they can finally offload the Wooden Spoon for the first time since 2015 as tries from Monty Ioane and Lorenzo Pani helped to seal a solid victory on the road.

Paolo Garbisi slotted 11 points off the tee while Martin Page-Relo sent over a further penalty, with Elliot Dee, Will Rowlands and Mason Grady going over for Wales late on.

Wales have now suffered seven successive Six Nations home reversals, two on the bounce to Italy and won just one game from 10 starts in the tournament since Warren Gatland returned for a second stint as head coach.

Italy had propped up the table for eight campaigns in a row, but they avoided that fate this time around, and the Cardiff mood was in stark contrast to five years ago when Wales stormed to the Six Nations title and a Grand Slam by crushing Ireland.

The Azzurri, though, could reflect on a memorable campaign that also saw them defeat Scotland and draw with France in Lille.

And life is not about to get any easier for Gatland or his players.  Their next game is against world champions South Africa in June, followed by a two-Test tour of Australia.

Wales monopolised early possession without making any real attacking headway, and Italy went ahead when Garbisi booted a sixth-minute penalty.

Italy comfortably absorbed continued pressure from Wales, before Garbisi doubled their lead through a second penalty after George North infringed by not releasing the ball on the floor.

And Wales’ promising start soon unravelled, with North’s midfield partner Nick Tompkins dropping a pass and Italy storming upfield to post an outstanding try.

Garbisi, centre Tommaso Menoncello and lock Federico Ruzza combined superbly, setting up a strong attacking platform before Wales were unlocked defensively when Ioane sprinted through a gap and touched down.

Garbisi missed the conversion, but Italy had an 11-point advantage after 20 minutes, leaving the Wooden Spoon hovering closer into view for Wales.

The home side were at sixes and sevens, a situation underlined when a defensive mix-up between Sam Costelow and Cameron Winnett saw the ball knocked-on to gift Italy an attacking scrum 20 metres out.

Although the Azzurri could not capitalise, there was continued uncertainty and hesitancy from Wales, and even when they established a threatening position inside Italy’s 22, Tompkins knocked on again.

Wales looked completely fazed by the occasion, in contrast to Italy’s largely calm and assured presence, and an 11-0 interval lead confirmed a sense of control for the visitors.

It had been an opening 40 minutes for Wales as poor as the first half against Scotland in their Six Nations opener, when the Scots built up a 20-point advantage.

Italy struck again just six minutes after the restart, with Ioane heavily involved and Pani producing a blistering finish as he cut back inside Wales wing Rio Dyer.  Garbisi’s conversion put them 18 points ahead, with seemingly no way back for Wales.

Gatland began ringing the changes, and a glimmer of hope was provided when Dee crashed over for a try 16 minutes from time that Costelow converted.

But Garbisi snuffed that out when he kicked a 45-metre penalty, and Page-Relo then found the target from even longer range as Wales’ abject Six Nations season reached its sorry conclusion despite late tries from Rowlands and Grady.

The teams

Wales:  15 Cameron Winnett, 14 Josh Adams, 13 George North, 12 Nick Tompkins, 11 Rio Dyer, 10 Sam Costelow, 9 Tomos Williams, 8 Aaron Wainwright, 7 Tommy Reffell, 6 Alex Mann, 5 Adam Beard, 4 Dafydd Jenkins (c), 3 Dillon Lewis, 2 Elliot Dee, 1 Gareth Thomas
Replacements:  16 Evan Lloyd, 17 Kemsley Mathias, 18 Harri O’Connor, 19 Will Rowlands, 20 Mackenzie Martin, 21 Kieran Hardy, 22 Ioan Lloyd, 23 Mason Grady

Italy:  15 Lorenzo Pani, 14 Louis Lynagh, 13 Juan Ignacio Brex, 12 Tommaso Menoncello, 11 Monty Ioane, 10 Paolo Garbisi, 9 Stephen Varney, 8 Lorenzo Cannone, 7 Michele Lamaro (c), 6 Sebastian Negri, 5 Federico Ruzza, 4 Niccolò Cannone, 3 Simone Ferrari, 2 Giacomo Nicotera, 1 Danilo Fischetti
Replacements:  16 Gianmarco Lucchesi, 17 Mirco Spagnolo, 18 Giosuè Zilocchi, 19 Andrea Zambonin, 20 Ross Vintcent, 21 Manuel Zuliani, 22 Martin Page-Relo, 23 Leonardo Marin

Referee:  Mathieu Raynal (France)
Assistant Referees:  Chris Busby (Ireland), Morné Ferreira (South Africa)
TMO:  Joy Neville (Ireland)

France beat Wales to ease pressure on Fabien Galthie

France responded to their recent criticism with a fine 45-24 victory over Wales at the Principality Stadium in another excellent Six Nations encounter.

Head coach Fabien Galthie has been under pressure following a disappointing tournament so far, but this was a much-improved display.

The teams were closely matched going into the interval, with Les Bleus edging 20-17 ahead through Gael Fickou and Nolann Le Garrec tries, while Thomas Ramos added 10 points off the tee.

However, they were behind in the early stages of the second period when Joe Roberts touched down, adding to earlier efforts from Rio Dyer and Tomos Williams.

That could have been a hammer blow for the French, who have been heavily criticised during the 2024 Six Nations, but they simply upped the intensity.

The replacements made a huge impact and three of those ― Georges-Henri Colombe, Romain Taofifenua and Maxime Lucu ― crossed the whitewash to seal a priceless win.

It condemned Wales to a fourth defeat in a row in this year’s competition, with Warren Gatland’s men hoping to avoid the wooden spoon against Italy next weekend.

Wales led by a point inside the closing quarter, but they have now lost 13 of their last 15 Six Nations games, and it is 21 years since Gatland’s fellow New Zealander Steve Hansen oversaw a campaign when they failed to win a match.

But that scenario could now unfold, with Italy appearing in stronger shape than Wales after beating Scotland and drawing with France, who finish their Six Nations season against England in Lyon next weekend.

Wales were dealt a late injury blow when hooker Ryan Elias withdrew due to hamstring tightness, so Elliot Dee won his 50th cap in the starting line-up and Test rookie Evan Lloyd featured among the replacements.

Sam Costelow kicked Wales into a third-minute lead, and although that was immediately cancelled out by a Ramos penalty, France’s defence was quickly cut open.

Wales attacked impressively, with Dee and lock Will Rowlands prominent, but no-one tracked Dyer and he sprinted 35 metres unopposed to touch down, before Costelow’s conversion opened up a 10-3 lead.

There was am immediate concern for Wales, though, when the game’s first scrum saw the Welsh front-row mangled into a horrible shape and Ramos kicked an easy penalty.

It gave France momentum, and they stung Wales midway through the opening half after consistent phase-play afforded Fickou a chance, and he brushed off Costelow’s weak challenge to cross wide out, with Ramos converting.

But any chance of France consolidating their advantage was quickly undone when centre Owen Watkin’s half-break exposed Ramos in defence and Williams claimed another opportunist score, again converted by Costelow.

🙌 Another incredible Six Nations game this weekend!#GuinnessM6N #WALvFRApic.twitter.com/hPIeGvBmPU

― Planet Rugby (@PlanetRugby) March 10, 2024

The rollercoaster contest had no obvious pattern, and Fickou set up a second French try 10 minutes before half-time when his strong carrying was rewarded by Le Garrec’s finish. Ramos’ conversion meant that France led 20-17.

Wales counter-attacked as the half drew to a close, but they could only reflect on what might have been after number Aaron Wainwright dropped Williams’ pass when the French defence was again stretched.

The try spree continued shortly after half-time, with Wales moving back in front following strong approach work by Costelow and Williams that created an opening for Roberts to score. Costelow’s touchline conversion left France four points behind.

The visitors looked to have gone back in front following a sustained spell of pressure, but lock Thibaud Flament was adjudged to have dropped the ball as he tried to touch down and Wales escaped after referee Luke Pearce had originally awarded the score.

A Ramos penalty made it a one-point game entering the final quarter and Wales found themselves under prolonged pressure before cracking 15 minutes from time as Colombe crashed over and Ramos converted.

It got worse for Wales as Taofifenua charged down Gareth Davies’ attempted clearance to secure a bonus-point triumph and there was no way back for the home side as Lucu’s late score compounded their misery.

The teams

Wales:  15 Cameron Winnett, 14 Josh Adams, 13 Joe Roberts, 12 Owen Watkin, 11 Rio Dyer, 10 Sam Costelow, 9 Tomos Williams, 8 Aaron Wainwright, 7 Tommy Reffell, 6 Dafydd Jenkins (c), 5 Adam Beard, 4 Will Rowlands, 3 Keiron Assiratti, 2 Elliot Dee, 1 Gareth Thomas
Replacements:  16 Evan Lloyd, 17 Corey Domachowski, 18 Dillon Lewis, 19 Alex Mann, 20 Mackenzie Martin, 21 Gareth Davies, 22 Ioan Lloyd, 23 Mason Grady

France:  15 Leo Barre, 14 Damian Penaud, 13 Gaël Fickou, 12 Nicolas Depoortere, 11 Louis Bielle-Biarrey, 10 Thomas Ramos, 9 Nolann Le Garrec, 8 Gregory Alldritt (c), 7 Charles Ollivon, 6 François Cros, 5 Emmanuel Meafou, 4 Thibaud Flament, 3 Uini Atonio, 2 Julien Marchand, 1 Cyril Baille
Replacements:  16 Peato Mauvaka, 17 Sebastien Taofifenua, 18 Georges-Henri Colombe, 19 Romain Taofifenua, 20 Alexandre Roumat, 21 Paul Boudehent, 22 Maxime Lucu, 23 Yoram Moefana

Referee:  Luke Pearce (England)
Assistant Referees:  Andrew Brace (Ireland), Damian Schneider (Argentina)
TMO:  Ian Tempest (England)

Marcus Smith drop-goal denies Ireland another Six Nations Grand Slam

A last-ditch drop-goal from replacement Marcus Smith saw an impressive England stun Ireland 23-22 in an absorbing Six Nations clash at Twickenham on Saturday.

The shock result denies the Irish a shot at back-to-back Grand Slams as they came off second best to a much-improved performance from the Red Rose in front of their fans.

Tries from Ollie Lawrence, George Furbank and Ben Earl were added to by a conversion apiece for George Ford and Smith before the latter landed that late drop-goal for the win.

The Achilles heel of failing to capitalise on visits to the 22 appeared to be harming England once again and their 8-6 lead was a poor return for half an hour of dominance that produced just a single try for Lawrence.

But they were inspired in the closing stages, soaking up James Lowe’s 72nd-minute try that appeared to have snatched the win for Ireland and then striking through Smith amid a late do-or-die assault.

England dazzled from the start and their first try had Furbank’s influence stamped all over it as he launched the counter-attack and then helped flash the ball to Lawrence, who finished in the left corner.

The early score developed into a full-scale onslaught as inspired England poured forward, directed by Ford and with Earl, Ollie Chessum and full debutant Immanuel Feyi-Waboso making telling contributions.

Bundee Aki made ground with every carry as Ireland’s main weapon but he was swimming against the tide as the white shirts pressed again and a second Lawrence try was ruled out because of a knock-on.

The crippling handling errors and turnovers that led to Scotland retaining the Calcutta Cup in round three had vanished, replaced by players running hard on to flat passes and punching holes in the visiting defence.

Yet for all the hosts’ dominance, successive Jack Crowley penalties meant they trailed 9-8 and as Ireland produced their first sustained attack the fly-half landed a fourth shot from the tee.

England were guilty of inviting pressure when Ford missed a routine penalty and Furbank took the ball into touch, but when their line were breached for the first time in the 44th minute it was because of their opponents’ killer instinct by exploiting Henry Slade’s positioning in the blitz defence to conjure a try for Lowe.

Furbank hit back quickly by racing over in the left corner after slick approach work from his team-mates and suddenly the pendulum swung again.

Ireland captain Peter O’Mahony was sent to the sin-bin for hands in the ruck and England seized their chance, battering away at the green wall through route one until Earl forced his way over.

Smith replaced Ford and Danny Care came on for his 100th cap but the Harlequins fly-half was unable to stop Lowe with his despairing late tackle attempt as Ireland crept back in front.

Elliot Daly missed with a long-range penalty attempt but there was still time for England to conjure the Six Nations win, Smith splitting the posts after his team had battered away at the whitewash.

😱 THE DRAMA!#GuinnessM6N @EnglandRugby pic.twitter.com/tdA5i2EPDl

― Guinness Men's Six Nations (@SixNationsRugby) March 9, 2024

The teams

England:  15 George Furbank, 14 Immanuel Feyi-Waboso, 13 Henry Slade, 12 Ollie Lawrence, 11 Tommy Freeman, 10 George Ford, 9 Alex Mitchell, 8 Ben Earl, 7 Sam Underhill, 6 Ollie Chessum, 5 George Martin, 4 Maro Itoje, 3 Dan Cole, 2 Jamie George (c), 1 Ellis Genge
Replacements:  16 Theo Dan, 17 Joe Marler, 18 Will Stuart, 19 Chandler Cunningham-South, 20 Alex Dombrandt, 21 Danny Care, 22 Marcus Smith, 23 Elliot Daly

Ireland:  15 Hugo Keenan, 14 Calvin Nash, 13 Robbie Henshaw, 12 Bundee Aki, 11 James Lowe, 10 Jack Crowley, 9 Jamison Gibson-Park, 8 Caelan Doris, 7 Josh van der Flier, 6 Peter O’Mahony (c), 5 Tadhg Beirne, 4 Joe McCarthy, 3 Tadhg Furlong, 2 Dan Sheehan, 1 Andrew Porter
Replacements:  16 Ronan Kelleher, 17 Cian Healy, 18 Finlay Bealham, 19 Iain Henderson, 20 Ryan Baird, 21 Jack Conan, 22 Conor Murray, 23 Ciaran Frawley

Referee:  Nika Amashukeli (Georgia)
Assistant Referees:  Andrea Piardi (Italy), Craig Evans (Wales)
TMO:  Ben Whitehouse (Wales)

Italy end long wait for Rome win as Scotland's Six Nations hopes dented

Italy scored 21 unanswered points in a stunning comeback to secure a 31-29 victory over Scotland, which severely dents Gregor Townsend’s men’s Six Nations hopes.

Juan Ignacio Brex, Louis Lynagh and Stephen Varney tries helped the Azzurri to a famous victory, with Paolo Garbisi and Martin Page-Relo adding points off the tee.

Zander Fagerson, Kyle Steyn, Pierre Schoeman and Sam Skinner went over for Scotland as they claimed two points from a shock defeat in Rome that could end their title push.

This chastening Six Nations defeat in the Eternal City is sure to crank up the heat on head coach Townsend five months after exiting the World Cup at the group-stage.

Italy got the chance to get the scoreboard ticking over just seconds into the match when Scotland were penalised on their own 22 immediately from the kick-off. Garbisi saw the ball fall off the tee while the clock was running but the fly-half kept his composure to re-tee and send his kick between the posts.

Scotland soon gained a foothold, however, and they got themselves in front in the sixth minute when Fagerson powered his way over from close range after a sustained spell of pressure inside the Italian 22. Finn Russell converted.

The visitors crossed the whitewash again five minutes later when they worked the ball out to the right and Blair Kinghorn fed Steyn, who bundled his way past two Italians to cross the line. Russell converted again.

The Azzurri summoned a swift response as scrum-half Page-Relo lobbed a clever kick over the top and centre Brex ran gleefully over just to the left of the posts in the 15th minute. Garbisi converted.

Shortly after Russell kicked a close-range penalty, Scotland scored their third try of the match in the 28th minute as Schoeman finished things off after being fed by George Turner in a driving maul. Russell’s conversion drifted wide.

Italy finished the first half strongly and reduced their interval deficit to 22-16 with a couple of penalties kicked by Garbisi and then Page-Relo, who was on target from close to the half-way line.

Scotland t―ought they had extended their advantage two minutes into the second period when scrum-half George Horne ― on his first start since the 2019 World Cup ― bolted over after excellent play by Huw Jones to release him but it was subsequently chalked off after Schoeman was adjudged to have committed a foul in the build-up.

The prop’s needless indiscretion was to prove hugely pivotal. Just two minutes later, Italy closed to within a point when debutant Lynagh ― son of former Australia international Michael ― ran on to Garbisi’s kick-through and darted over the line. Garbisi ― with the chance to edge his team in front ― saw his conversion attempt come back off the post.

The Scots found themselves in trouble in the 57th minute when the Italians got themselves in front as replacement scrum-half Varney found a gap between Andy Christie and Jack Dempsey to nudge his way over. This time Garbisi was on target.

Garbisi then scored a huge penalty from distance to put the hosts nine points ahead with seven minutes to play, placing the Scots in a state of desperation.

Replacement lock Skinner ― denied a match-winning try against France a month previously – pushed over with two minutes left and Russell converted to bring the Scots back to within two points and set up a tense finish.

Townsend’s team were unable to find another score, however, and ― as the Azzurri celebrated a rare and deserved victory ― the Scotland players slumped to their knees in abject despair as a campaign had that promised so much was reduced to rubble in Rome.

The teams

Italy:  15 Ange Capuozzo, 14 Louis Lynagh, 13 Juan Ignacio Brex, 12 Tommaso Menoncello, 11 Monty Ioane, 10 Paolo Garbisi, 9 Martin Page-Relo, 8 Ross Vintcent, 7 Michele Lamaro (c), 6 Sebastian Negri, 5 Federico Ruzza, 4 Niccolò Cannone, 3 Simone Ferrari, 2 Giacomo Nicotera, 1 Danilo Fischetti
Replacements:  16 Gianmarco Lucchesi, 17 Spanish Mirco, 18 Giosuè Zilocchi, 19 Andrea Zambonin, 20 Lorenzo Cannone, 21 Stephen Varney, 22 Leonardo Marin, 23 Federico Mori

Scotland:  15 Blair Kinghorn, 14 Kyle Steyn, 13 Huw Jones, 12 Cameron Redpath, 11 Duhan van der Merwe, 10 Finn Russell (cc), 9 George Horne, 8 Jack Dempsey, 7 Rory Darge (cc), 6 Andy Christie, 5 Scott Cummings, 4 Grant Gilchrist, 3 Zander Fagerson, 2 George Turner, 1 Pierre Schoeman
Replacements:  16 Ewan Ashman, 17 Alec Hepburn, 18 Elliot Millar-Mills, 19 Sam Skinner, 20 Jamie Ritchie, 21 Matt Fagerson, 22 Ali Price, 23 Kyle Rowe

Referee:  Angus Gardner (Australia)
Assistant Referees:  Karl Dickson (England), Adam Leal (England)
TMO:  Marius van der Westhuizen (South Africa)