Italy captain Michele Lamaro basking in the glory of famous victory over Scotland

The horrendous rain in Rome made for an attritional affair, but the gutsy Italians, led by talismanic captain  Michele Lamaro, endured wave after wave of Scottish attack in the dying embers of the match to eventually earn a turnover that sealed the contest.

Italy's win was just the tenth in 39 matches against Scotland, but the second in the last three clashes. It was also a memorable day for Lamaro, Juan Ignacio Brex and Paolo Garbisi, who all celebrated their 50th caps.

"Absolutely incredible," quipped Lamaro after the match.

"I think that shows how much we care for each other, how much we care for this jersey, for this country. This is us.

"I couldn't ask more [on my 50th cap] from the boys. It's been an absolute pleasure for me, an absolute honour to get this big achievement.

"We couldn't ask our teammates to do more. Now we've got a dream in our head. We keep going on. I will keep it in my head."

Italy next face Ireland in Dublin. The hosts are on a 16-match win streak against Italy.

Meanwhile, an under-fire Scotland coach Gregor Townsend admitted that there was now considerable pressure on the rest of the Six Nations campaign.

"Pressure, of course there is, it is part of the game," he told the BBC.

"Of course, there'll be criticism for the result and the performance. I'm with my team. I was hugely proud of the effort they put in at the end, trying to find a way to win."