Barry Ferguson equalised after the break but as Alex McLeish’s men tried valiantly to grab the winner that would take them to Austria and Switzerland next summer, Panucci struck.

The sense of numbness that swept round Hampden lasted well after the referee Manuel Gonzalez blew for the final whistle to end a remarkable campaign for Scotland.

Folk singer Ronnie Brown’s rousing rendition of ’Flower of Scotland’ ended a week, if not a month, of unprecedented hype leading up to the match.

A true football nation embraced a strand of sporting nationalism arguably without equal in Europe. Scotland’s task was simple – inflict defeat upon the World Cup winners for the first time since they beat them 1-0 in 1965.

After Toni’s opening goal Scotland had a decent penalty claim when Lee McCulloch’s shot struck the arm of Gianluca Zambrotta.

Then Antonio di Natale had a goal chalked offside, wrongly, television replays suggested.

When David Weir’s header was cleared off the line by Andrea Pirlo seconds before the half-time whistle, it looked like that might have been the turning point.

Ferguson’s scrambled equaliser just after the hour mark sent a surge of energy around Hampden Park before Panucci switched off the lights with his late header.

Reputations have been enhanced, notably Alan Hutton and James McFadden who will remain a national hero after his winner in France, although his contribution in this game was far less fruitful.

However, when the dust settles, the hangovers subside and the Scottish nation goes back to work, the disappointment will last all the way to the finals next summer where once again the Tartan Army will watch a major international football tournament on television.

It is unlikely that the Scotland fans will witness a qualification campaign quite like this again. A previously-arranged Robbie Williams concert at Hampden Park in September 6, 2006 meant the campaign began at Celtic Park and a 6-0 thrashing of the Faroe Islands was no more than expected but the 2-1 win in Lithuania four days later was more encouraging.

When Gary Caldwell fired in the winner against France at Hampden in October, the Tartan Army laughed at their good fortune and their top position in Group B.

A 2-0 defeat in Ukraine the following Wednesday was arguably more in keeping with Scotland’s true level but still they retained an unlikely position at the top of Group B.

By the time Scotland resumed their campaign in March 2007, they had Alex McLeish at the helm following Walter Smith’s decision to return to Rangers.

Most thought that the only way for McLeish to go was down but fortune shone upon him with Craig Beattie’s last-minute winner in a 2-1 victory over Georgia at Hampden. Still top.

However, again, that fine win preceded a 2-0 defeat in Italy which allowed France and Ukraine to draw level.

A 2-0 win in the Faroe Islands which ended the season in June buried some ghosts of previous disasters.

A 3-1 victory over Lithuania at the national stadium in September kept McLeish’s men in the running but it was simply a prelude to an incredible and heroic night in Paris when McFadden’s wonder goal again gave Scotland victory over the World Cup runners-up against the run of play. Scotland were back on top of the Group B with a result hailed by McLeish as the “best in modern times”.

Euphoria began to engulf the nation, sweeping McLeish’s men to a 3-1 win over Ukraine at Hampden in October.

A 2-0 defeat in Georgia four days later brought the Scots six-wins-in-a-trot to an end and down to earth with a bump, leaving a do-or-die match against the Azzurri.

France recovered from the two blows to ease their way to the top of the table.

But in the end, beating Italy was a bridge too far. An improved seeding for the 2010 World Cup draw in December is a welcome, but scant consolation.

The players deserved the cheers that accompanied their emotional lap of honour after the game but yet again, it was a case of so near, yet so far.