Former Crymych schoolboy Stephen Varney shone as Italy registered an historic first win over Australia with a stunning 28-27 win in Florence.

Two tries from full-back Ange Capuozzo helped steer Italy to victory, with a much-changed Australia side unable to deny them right at the death as debutant Ben Donaldson’s conversion attempt whistled past the post.

"It means a lot for the boys, they grafted hard all game and we dug deep," scrum half Varney said at the post-match presentation.

"We are building well, we have very good coaches. We are proud to be part of this team and have great leaders.

"Capuozzo is an amazing payer, he has turned up all year and put in strong performances. Im really happy for him."

Originally from Rhoshill, near Cardigan, Varney won the Welsh Schools U16s Cup for Ysgol y Preseli in 2017, and came through the junior ranks Crymych RFC, before becoming a professional player.

The Welsh-speaker is the son of former Neath and Aberavon flanker Adrian Varney, but both of his mother's parents were born in Italy, hence his eligibility to play for the Azzurri.

The 21 year-old Gloucester scrum half made his international debut for Italy, from the bench, in the 2020 Autumn Nations Series match against Scotland and has since established himself on the international stage.

After being named as the Player of the Match in the 49-17 win against Samoa the previous weekend, Varney displayed a maturity beyond his years against the Wallabies.

His accurate passing and game management proved crucial on a historic afternoon in Florence.

The thrilling win was Italy’s maiden triumph in 19 meetings with Australia and leaves them with two wins from two so far in the Autumn Nations Series following their success over Samoa.

However, the loss is a concern for the touring Wallabies who have now suffered back-to-back defeats after also being edged out by one point against France in Paris last weekend.

Australia trailed 17-3 at the Stadio Artemio Franchi after Pierre Bruno and Capuozzo both touched down for the Azzurri, but Tom Wright pulled one back to reduce Italy’s advantage to 17-8 at the break.

Fraser McReight scored four minutes after the break to help cut the gap further, but Capuozzo soon went over for his second try of the game after bursting through the Australian defence and touching down in the right corner.

Tom Robertson soon added a third try for the Wallabies to give them a lifeline and Cadeyrn Neville crossed at the very end of the match, but Donaldson was unable to convert as Italy held on for a famous win.