A clearly frustrated coach Franco Smith added: “We are disappointed with the result, that goes without saying. I thought we should have scored more points in the first half. Benetton were good defensively and it’s always difficult to come and play here.

“We maybe didn’t get the rub of the green in the second half and we ended up having a high penalty count in the second half. That’s something we’ll have to look at because that trapped us in our half of the pitch and took away our attacking platforms.”

On the sequence of events, including Stafford McDowall’s forward pass in the final minutes, that led to Benetton’s field position for the winning drop-goal, he said: “The message was to get down the field as quickly as possible. We back the way the players tried to go about that. The way we clear is to get it to width and kick from the edge when their backfield is isolated. We’ve executed that for four years now. We’ve closed out a lot of these games. We got one wrong today.”

The returning Sione Tuipulotu concerningly seemed to limp off late in the second half but Smith was quick to allay concerns.

“No injury for Sione, it was just cramp,” he explained. “Obviously, he hasn’t played for a while. The grass pitch here is a bit different to the one he’s been preparing on at home. It was just precautionary.”

Glasgow Warriors started strongly as Benetton fumbled both the opening kick-off and an early line-out deep in their own 22. The visitors immediately went on the attack and earned a penalty inside two minutes, but Glasgow turned down the points in favour of a kick to the corner—only for them to then misfire at their own line-out.

Matt Fagerson then sparked a counter-attack with a break near halfway, but his inside pass was intercepted by Alessandro Garbisi, allowing Benetton to clear. Despite dominating early territory, Glasgow couldn’t convert pressure into points, while a penalty for not releasing gave Benetton field position. Fly-half Jacob Umaga missed the kick, leaving the scores level.

Adam Hastings sparked Glasgow to life by taking the 22 drop-out quickly before racing upfield and feeding Johnny Matthews, who charged into Benetton’s half. Hastings’ cross-field kick almost found Kyle Rowe for the opening try, but it just evaded the winger’s grasp.

Glasgow’s kick-chase continued to trouble the hosts, with captain Steyn commanding in the air, young flanker Mackenzie Duncan popping up everywhere, and even giant 6ft 8ins lock Oguntibeju getting in on the fun to force Louis Lynagh into a sliced clearance.

Their dominance finally told after 19 minutes. Another penalty was kicked to the corner and the impressive Oguntibeju powered over from close range for the opening try, converted by Hastings for a 7-0 lead.

Benetton enjoyed their only respite when a pressured first half as a soft penalty at the line-out by Warriors gave Umaga an easy kick that he duly slotted for three points to get the home side on the board.

The hosts’ attack continued to struggle, though, under pressure from Glasgow’s line-speed, forcing them to frequently kick poorly under pressure. One such kick from Umaga went out on the full, and from the ensuing line-out, McDowall crashed up the middle before McKay burst through the defence to show his pace as he ran in untouched from near halfway. Hastings converted to extend the lead to 14–3.

Glasgow kept pressing, attacking from deep off the restart with a series of powerful carries that forced repeated infringements. They couldn’t convert, though, as Hastings missed a straightforward penalty following a late Benetton tackle, and another promising attack ended with a turnover for not releasing when just a few feet from the try line.

At half-time, Glasgow led 14-3. A commanding lead away from home. Yet it could have been far greater had they capitalised on their chances, with Benetton hanging on without really firing a shot for 40 minutes.

The tide turns

Whatever Benetton’s Scottish coach Callum MacRae said—or perhaps shouted—at halftime clearly had an effect. The home side emerged transformed, immediately capitalising on an early Rowe fumble to earn a scrum inside Glasgow’s 22. Their renewed intensity drew successive penalties from the Warriors’ defence, but referee Chris Connors then penalised Benetton at the scrum under Glasgow’s posts to reprieve the visitors.

That respite was brief. Benetton soon forced a scrum penalty of their own and went back on the attack. Malakai Fekitoa thundered over the gain-line before Siua Maile sliced through the Glasgow defence, feeding Italy star Menoncello to score their first try. Umaga converted to cut the deficit to 14-10.

With Benetton having momentum for the first time, Smith turned to his bench, sending on five replacements, including British & Irish Lion Scott Cummings. The impact was mixed—replacement prop Sam Talakai was soon penalised for an illegal clear-out on Michele Lamaro, allowing Benetton to regain field position.

The hosts’ intensity and precision were unrecognisable from the first half. Their carries had bite, their handling was precise and their kicking game turned the tide against Glasgow’s previously dominant back three.

With 15 minutes to play, Benetton’s maul looked certain to score, but a heroic effort from Duncan, Cummings and George Horne somewhat miraculously held the ball up.

Niccolò Cannone was shown a yellow-card for a no-arms tackle, yet even down to 14 men, Benetton kept coming. Replacement scrum-half Louis Werchon’s quick tap caught Glasgow off guard, leading to a penalty that Umaga slotted to bring the score to 13-14 with eight minutes remaining.

The impressive Steyn nearly rallied his flagging side when he hared after his own kick to bundle Umaga into touch and give Glasgow a vital line-out deep in Benetton’s 22. It was a golden chance to seal the game with Benetton still down to 14 men. Glasgow attacked but Benetton skipper and talisman Lamaro wasn’t to be outdone and produced a captain’s moment of his own with a jackal penalty as Warriors drove for the line.

As the clock ticked down, Benetton mounted one last attack from a scrum inside Glasgow’s half. They carried up to Warriors’ 22 before attacking close to the ruck for centre-field possession, successfully drawing a penalty in the process. Playing advantage, Smith coolly slotted a 40-metre drop goal to seal a dramatic 16-14 comeback victory for the Treviso side, much to their fans’ delight and Glasgow’s dismay.

 

Teams –

Benetton: M Gallagher; L Lynagh, T Menoncello, M Fekitoa, P Odogwu; J Umaga, A Garbisi; M Spagnolo, S Maile, S Ferrari, R Favretto, E Snyman, A Izekor, M Lamaro©, S Fa’aso’o. Subs used: R Smith, Garbisi, Avaca, L Werchon, N Tetaz, N Gasperini, N Zilocchi, N Cannone, L Cannone, Fa’aso’o.

Glasgow Warriors: J McKay; K Steyn©, S McDowall, S Tuipulotu, K Rowe; A Hastings, J Dobie; R Sutherland, J Matthews, F Richardson, J Oguntibeju, A Samuel, G Brown, M Duncan, M Fagerson. Subs used: D Lancaster, G Horne, P Shickerling, G Hiddleston, S Talakai, M Williamson, S Cummings, E Ferrie.

Referee: Chris Connors

 

Scorers –

Benetton: Tries: T Menoncello; Cons: J Umaga; Pens: J Umaga 2; DG: R Smith.

Glasgow Warriors: Tries: J Oruntibeju, J McKay; Cons: A Hastings 2.

Scoring sequence (Glasgow Warriors first): 0-5; 0-7; 3-7; 3-12; 3-14 (h-t) 8-14; 10-14; 13-14; 16-14.

 

Yellow cards –

Benetton: Cannone (66 mins)

 

Attendance: 4,809