Italy's Allan aiming for first Rome win in Six Nations

Italy's Tommaso Allan will make his 80th international appearance when they host England in the Six Nations on Saturday and the flyhalf would love to finally experience a win in Rome.

Allan has tasted victory with Italy, including a win in Scotland in 2015 and a famous triumph over Australia in Florence in 2022, but has yet to experience success at Stadio Olimpico.

"Obviously, we would love to win a game at home, that's for sure. I haven't won a game in Rome and I'd love to do that because we owe them (the fans) that much," Allan told Reuters.

"They always come out and I've heard it's probably a sold-out stadium for England, which is incredible, and hopefully we can do them proud."

Allan made his debut in 2013, coming off the bench to score a try in a defeat by Australia, and over a decade later is the most experienced member of the squad.

"I never thought, 11 years ago, that I would have played 10 Six Nations, three World Cups and all that, so it's quite surreal," the 30-year-old said.

"Obviously you don't think about it too much, you think about the games as much as possible, but once it settles in, it's a nice milestone to achieve."

SHELL-SHOCKED

Italy were shell-shocked at last year's World Cup, suffering heavy defeats by New Zealand and France, but with Gonzalo Quesada taking over as head coach from Kieran Crowley it has been easier to make a fresh start.

"We didn't end the World Cup as we would have liked, but we've put that behind us, we've got a new set of coaches and we've learned from those mistakes," Allan said.

Quesada has already explained that he won't be completely changing things as the squad needs continuity.

"We've kept our DNA that we've had for the last two years but we're trying to be a bit more pragmatic, in