Italy proved they were moving in the right direction by giving World Cup finalists England a scare in the Six Nations, said coach Nick Mallett.

"I'm very proud of the way they played in the first two games and I hope that if we carry on like this, we'll get a win soon," Mallett (pictured) said after the 23-19 defeat on Sunday.

Italy lost their Six Nations opener 16-11 to Ireland.

The former Springboks boss said it was unrealistic to expect too much from the Azzurri but he was happy with the result of the changes that he had implemented since taking over from Pierre Berbizier after last year's World Cup.

Mallett said he was particularly pleased with the reaction to Sergio Parisse being named captain.

"I think the performance of this Italian side has much to do with Sergio's captaincy and the way he kept the team together," Mallett said.

"I'm really pleased with the way he has captained the team in the last two weeks. I think that's important for Italy."

The South African was also satisfied with centre Andrea Masi's switch to flyhalf and said he was now concerned about his reluctance to kick for position.

"Andrea was in a couple of positions where he could have kicked, it's just a question of him getting the self-confidence to do that."

Reuters