England got their Six Nations campaign off to a flying start in Rome on Saturday with a come-from-behind 27-24 win over Italy thanks to a second-half try from Alex Mitchell.
England led 17-14 at half-time after an impressive opening by the Azzurri, who were playing their first match under new head coach Gonzalo Quesada.
However, a try from Mitchell and a shot from George Ford gave Steve Borthwick's side the win, with Elliot Daly converting a first-half cross and Ethan Roots narrowly successful.
Alessandro Garbisi, Tommaso Allan and Monty Ioane scored tries for the hosts, while Allan and Paolo Garbisi added kicks as the Azzurri's drought continued against England.
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Roots, the New Zealand-born blindside flanker, shone through with a solid performance in the No. 6 jersey on his England Test debut and was named Roma's player of the match.
As promised by new captain Jamie George, the title favorites will play more freely and kick less than they did in the first year of Borthwick's reign, at least until the focus switches to crushing Italy in the final half-hour. There weren't many.
But overall, it was the Azzurri who played the more exciting rugby, showing ingenuity and ambition as they looked to earn their first win against their rivals, and Allan's second try was beautiful.
New caps for Roots, Fraser Dingwall, Finn Smith, Chandler Cunningham-South and Immanuel Fay-Waboso bring freshness to England, who have lost their first four years of the Six Nations, but their initial outlook remains was not so optimistic. .
They lost replacement prop Elise Genge to a foot injury just before kick-off, but that was just the beginning of trouble as Italy's starting team orchestrated a try for Alessandro Garbisi.
It rewarded their bright start when Lorenzo Cannone slipped out into the gap and Garbisi was able to scoop up the off-road.
Allan and Ford exchanged penalties, making the score 10-3, but the difference gave England the jolt they needed, with Freeman slipping into space and sending a scoring pass to Daly.
A try was imminent, but it was quickly overshadowed by Italy's brilliant counterattack. Italy's accurate passing and deft running ball from a set piece were perfectly executed, and Allan scored the goal.
Two penalties by Ford kept England in hot pursuit of the Azzurri at half-time, but they needed to regroup quickly, especially in defence, to avoid an unwanted piece of history.
Relief came in the 45th minute when Mitchell jinked and spun over the whitewash to give the visitors the lead for the first time.
Italy's play lacked the precision it had before, with England stuck deep in their own half, while Ford converted a series of penalties to take a 10-point lead.
It was an infuriating moment for the hosts, with the Azzurri costing themselves time and time again with handling errors, the lineout continuing to break down and Allan missing an important penalty.
Daly was sent to the sin bin as Italy looked for a try to pull them back into contention, but despite Monty Ioane scoring a touchdown in the last gasp, the upset slipped through his fingers and no further magic could be made. could not be produced.
team
Italy: 15 Tommaso Alan, 14 Lorenzo Pani, 13 Juan Ignacio Brex, 12 Tommaso Menoncello, 11 Monti Ioane, 10 Paolo Garbisi, 9 Alessandro Garbisi, 8 Lorenzo Cannone, 7 Michele Ramaro (c), 6 Sebastian Negri, 5 Federico Luzza, 4 Niccolo Canone, 3 Pietro Ceccarelli, 2 Gianmarco Lucchesi, 1 Danilo Fischetti
Replacement: 16 Giacomo Nicotera, 17 Mirco Spagnuolo, 18 Giosue Girocchi, 19 Andrea Zambonin, 20 Alessandro Izecol, 21 Manuel Zuliani, 22 Stephen Varney, 23 Federico Mori
England: 15 Freddie Steward, 14 Tommy Freeman, 13 Henry Slade, 12 Fraser Dingwall, 11 Elliot Daly, 10 George Ford, 9 Alex Mitchell, 8 Ben Earl, 7 Sam Underhill, 6 Ethan Daley. Roots, 5 Ollie Chetham, 4 Maro Itoje, 3 Will Stuart, 2 Jamie George (c), 1 Joe Marler
Replacement: 16 Theo Dunn, 17 Beno Obano, 18 Dan Cole, 19 Alex Coles, 20 Chandler Cunningham-South, 21 Danny Care, 22 Finn Smith, 23 Immanuel Fay-Waboso
Referee: Paul Williams (New Zealand)
Assistant referee: Nick Berry (Australia), Nika Amashkeli (Georgia)
TMO: Brett Cronan (Australia)
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