Treviso ended the Heineken Cup Pool stages with a win to their name after they came from behind to beat the Ospreys 17-14 at Stadio Di Monigo.
The home side made a fast start as they attempted to salvage some pride from a Heineken Cup campaign that had seen them collect just a solitary losing bonus-point prior to kick-off.
Edoardo Gori's smart break from the base of a scrum and good work from the Italian forwards laid the platform for Kris Burton to register three points from the kicking tee but they were the only points that Treviso could muster in a first half low on quality.
The visitors did have the better of possession and territory in difficult conditions in northern Italy as the half wore on but they could only manage two Dan Biggar penalties in the opening quarter of an hour themselves to leave the score finely poised at 6-3 at half-time.
Biggar extended the lead with a drop-goal early in the second half and the Welshmen would have thought that victory was almost in the bag when Ben John broke a couple of tackles and offloaded for Kahn Fotuali'i to put Tom Isaacs over in the corner just before the hour mark.
The Italians refused to give up hope though and, after a period of concerted pressure from the forwards from a line-out and then in a series of scrums, Alessandro Zanni crawled over the line to reduce the deficit to four points after Burton's conversion.
And the hosts were rewarded for the endeavour as they snatched victory with the final action of the game as Giulio Toniolatti broke through the Ospreys' defensive line and set up the opportunity for replacement Andrea Pratichetti to dive over from short range.
It may have been a dead rubber but the celebrations showed that it certainly meant something to Treviso and the Ospreys finished a disappointing European campaign by letting a commanding 14-3 lead slip in the final six minutes.
The scorers:
For Treviso:
Tries: Zanni, Pratichetti
Con: Burton 2
Pen: Burton
For Ospreys:
Try: Isaacs
Pen: Biggar 2
Drop: Biggar
Treviso: 15 Luke McLean, 14 Ludovico Nitoglia, 13 Tommaso Benvenuti, 12 Alberto Sgarbi, 11 Giiulio Toniolatti, 10 Kristopher Burton, 9 Edoardo Gori, 8 Robert Barbieri, 7 Alessandro Zanni, 6 Paul Derbyshire, 5 Francesco Minto, 4 Antonio Pavanello, 3 Lorenzo Cittadini, 2 Giovanni Maistri, 1 Michele Rizzo.
Replacements: 16 Enrico Ceccato, 17 Alberto de Marchi, 18 Ignacio Fernandez Rouyet, 19 Marco Fuser, 20 Valerio Bernabo, 21 Dean Budd, 22 Fabio Semenzato, 23 Andrea Pratichetti.
Ospreys: 15 Richard Fussell, 14 Thomas Grabham, 13 Tom Isaacs, 12 Andrew Bishop, 11 Eli Walker, 10 Dan Biggar, 9 Kahn Fotuali'i, 8 Joe Bearman, 7 Sam Lewis, 6 Jonathan Thomas, 5 James King, 4 Lloyd Peers, 3 Adam Jones, 2 Scott Baldwin, 1 Duncan Jones.
Replacements: 16 Matthew Dwyer, 17 Ryan Bevington, 18 Campbell Johnstone, 19 Ian Gough, 20 George Stowers, 21 Rhys Webb, 22 Matthew Morgan, 23 Jonathan Spratt.
Venue: Stadio Di Monigo
Referee: Greg Garner (England)
Assistant referees: Luke Pearce (England), Paul Dix (England)
Television match official: Trevor Fisher (England)
Comments
jontheref says...
melkdave,
If nothing you are consistent.
Spouting the same drivel for the last two months or more.
As for not getting out of the group stages, check your facts, Swansea, Llanelli and Cardiff, as regions and clubs all did it.
You refer to them as clubs, that changed over 10 years ago, where have you been?
Merging Ospreys and Scarlets would not work, if you cannot see that, you know nothing about loyalties.
Merge Northampton and leicester, you'd have more chance!
Get your facts right.
Posted 20:13 22nd January 2013
Lucasrg says...
OK...I think we all agree that WRU has to change something and support more their clubs.
Posted 19:25 21st January 2013
melkdave says...
@Makemehappy &Juntheref
You can come up with all the excuses you want,the fact is atm no welsh side was worth its place in whats supposed to be the premier club competion in the NH..I only remember one welsh side ever progressing out of the group stages ,and that was Cardiff in the HCs 1st year.Once matches between english and welsh clubs where spectacuals and hard fought affairs.Now its a surprise if a welsh club even comes close to wining.Yes the funding differance plays apart,,and im like you waiting for the WRU to get off its arse and start doing something about it.by supporting the clubs properly.The latest review the 3rd i think in the last 5-6 yrs ,Did or said nothing,yes they are going to try the IRFU model,but without central contracts and proper funding its a toal waste of time and doomed to failure,before it starts.The only thing that will help welsh clubs ,is a complete overhual ofthe Pro12,introduce consequences for losing,HC qualification battles,and other things to get fans excited and going to matches.Rather than to their local club.On their own no welsh club is strong enough to compete in europe atm,they just dont havethe depth of players ect.So merge Scarlets and Ospreys in to a new regional team ,same with Cardiff / Newport,then you have 1 possibly 2 teams able to compete,and start new regional teams in the north ,and valleys /nid wales,and build a proper fan base tby playing matches at all the regions stadia .Make it so fans can support their local and regional team,rather than as now one or the other.
Posted 14:45 21st January 2013
Lucasrg says...
LOL...I was watching the game and had to switch at the 60th minute as I was so frustrated and annoyed by the ref...so I went to see Leiceter vs Toulouse and 20 minutes later Treviso did those two tries! Very happy for them, although the series of silly mistakes after some decent rugby plays is still very frustrating.
I repeat this: the day Treviso starts to win more games and be up there in the rankings, Italy will have a chance for the 6N title.
Posted 21:00 20th January 2013
jontheref says...
yeah, milkslave,
we all wait with baited breathe for your sad pronouncements on what went wrong.
You cannot be called a parrot, as parrots have a modicum of intelligence!
broken record?
probably not, as my records bring me lots of joy, as old as they are.
maybe you should focus on your own situation, before talking about others?
I'm seeing focus in 10 days, willyou be there?
I doubt it, they will have pulled the blinds and settled you down for the night by the time adults go out.
Posted 20:56 20th January 2013
makemehappy says...
Shocking decision for the first Treviso try. Hope the idiot of a ref never has anything to do with rugby again!
Melkdave for some reason doesn't comment on this, but given it was so obvious, you wonder why. You can then tell that he thinks the tactics of clubs are wrong - LOL - maybe something to do with the cheque books!
Posted 20:15 20th January 2013
melkdave says...
Well done Treviso,shows their win at the start of the Pro12 season wasnt a fluck,and they are becoming a force to bereckoned with ,similar to Connacht.That said i do feel that none of the welsh or scottish clubs this season have really been worth their place .In what is supposed to be the premier club rugby competion in the NH .They have been just dredfull,and on preent form,and indications.Miles behind the english,french and irish clubs in tatics,and play.Qualification on merit has to come otherwise the HC will just become a joke,much like the Pro12 league is regarded now.
Posted 18:21 20th January 2013