Jacques Brunel conceded Italy were second best in set-pieces and at the breakdown as Scotland ended a lengthy wait for a Six Nations victory with a 36-20 triumph on Saturday.

Scotland's last win in the competition came in 2014 and they had lost nine straight matches heading into the contest in Rome.

However, Greig Laidlaw contributed 21 points with the boot, while John Barclay, John Hardie and Tommy Seymour all scored tries to earn Vern Cotter a first Six Nations win as head coach.

Italy coach Brunel, who was leading the team for the last time at home as he is to leave his role at the end of the tournament, was unable to pin-point a reason for Italy's weakness at the set-piece and breakdowns.

"It's true that it was a very strong Scotland at the breakdown and we had many difficulties at scrums and line-outs," he said.

"We knew Scotland had a good team but we did not expect to have these kind of difficulties and since the beginning of the game we could not solve this problem."

Captain Sergio Parisse believes Italy were punished for a slow start and for their indiscipline at the breakdown.

"In the first 20 minutes they were clinical. You can't give them 20 minutes and expect to come back into the game," he told ITV Sport.

"I think both teams had a lot of pressure before the match. They managed better than us especially in the first half.

"They put us under pressure, we were not so disciplined in the second half, we gave them easy points and they have a good kicker in Laidlaw."