Leinster Rugby vs Benetton Rugby

Gianmarco Lucchesi who would emerge
with the ball. Smith’s conversion was
pushed wide of the far post, but the home
crowd were roaring their approval.
Horne would cut the deficit with the
final kick of the half, after a series
of thunderous ball-carries inside the
Benetton 22, leaving the gap at 13-6 at
half-time.
The home side were straight out of the
blocks at the start of the second half and
were rewarded for their endeavour with
their third try of the night just two minutes
into the second 40.
A set move from a lineout saw Benetton
work the blindside to set Ignacio Mendy
free on the wing, the Argentina 7s star
sprinting away before stepping inside
the cover defence for the score. Smith’s
conversion made it a two-score game,
before extending the lead with a penalty
to make it 23-6 after 46 minutes.
Benetton were enjoying the lion’s share
of possession and territory, a monopoly
that Smith took full advantage of with his
third successful penalty of the evening on
56 minutes.
The Warriors needed a response, and
with the coaching team rolling out the
replacements, momentum began to shift.
From a penalty, Glasgow went to the
corner and while the Glasgow maul was
initially stopped short, Ali Price found
Zander Fagerson on the short ball and
the tight-head proved far too powerful
for the covering defence, crashing over
for the score to bring Glasgow back into
proceedings.
With the wind in their sails, Franco
Smith’s men began to play from deep
and a second try felt like it was coming,
and no-one came closer than Sebastian
Cancelliere with seven minutes to play.
A Rory Darge turnover saw the winger
thump the ball downfield and win the
foot race, only for the ball to trickle
agonisingly over the dead-ball line before
it could be grounded.
Instead, the final word would belong to
Benetton. The breakdown of a Glasgow
attack on halfway saw Mendy get a boot
to the ball first, with the winger winning
his own race to regather and touch
down. Smith’s conversion took the final
score to 33-11, much to the delight of the
home supporters.
A great start to the BKT URC season for
Benetton Rugby and just the start they
would have wanted too with a trip to
Dublin and the RDS Arena next up.
Benetton: (13) 33
Tries: Padovani, Lucchesi, Mendy 2
Cons: Smith 2 Penalties: Smith 3
Glasgow Warriors: (6) 11
Try: Z Fagerson
Penalties: Horne 2
www.leinsterrugby.ie | 75