Pienaar puts Ulster in pound seats
Ulster edged a huge European Cup encounter with Leicester Tigers to ensure they finished top of Pool Five and secured a home quarterfinal in the process.
Mark Anscombe's men became the first side since Munster in 2006 to win at Welford Road in European competition as they made it six successes from six fixtures in this year's competition.
Man of the Match Ruan Pienaar scored all of his side's 22 points with a second-half try and a 100 percent record from the tee – with Toby Flood adding four penalties and the conversion of Niall Morris' 50th minute try for the Tigers who will now be on the road in the last eight.
Pienaar was full of praise for his teammates.
"We had to make a massive step-up and the forwards were brilliant," Ulster's Springbok said.
As top seeds, Ulster will play eighth seeds Saracens at Ravenhill. That will see former Ulster player and coach, Mark McCall returning to his old stomping ground.
* In earlier matches Saracens ran wild at Allianz Park, scoring ten tries to book their place in the European Cup last eight for a third successive season.
Wing David Strettle scored a hat-trick, with fellow wing Chris Ashton crossing for a well deserved brace.
However, Toulouse finished top of Pool Three – leaving Saracens qualifying as one of the best two runners-up and facing a difficult away tie in the next round.
It was a case of "after the Lord Mayor's show" for four-times champions Toulouse, as they laboured to a Pool Three win against Zebre at Stadio XXV Aprile.
This came just a week after overpowering nearest group rivals Saracens at home to clinch a place in the last eight.
The eight European Cup quarterfinalists are now confirmed with Ulster, Leinster, Toulon, Toulouse, Clermont, Munster, Leicester and Saracens through to the knockout stage.
Ulster's titanic victory over Leicester has earned them the No.1 seeding, and a clash with Saracens in the last eight in April.
Johann Muller's side and reigning champions, Toulon, have also both secured money-spinning home quarterfinals.
Northampton, meanwhile, have booked a spot in the Amlin Challenge Cup quarter-finals, with Cardiff, Edinburgh, Harlequins, Scarlets and Gloucester also in the running for the other two places.
We look at all Saturday's drama!
Saracens 64-6 Connacht
Saracens ran wild at Allianz Park scoring ten tries to book their place in the European Cup last eight for a third successive season.
However, Toulouse finished top of Pool Three – leaving Saracens qualifying as one of the best two runners-up and facing a difficult away tie in the next round.
Wing David Strettle scored a hat-trick, with fellow wing Chris Ashton crossing for a well deserved brace.
Other try scorers on the day were, Schalk Brits, Alex Goode, George Kruis, Jackson Wray and James Johnston.
Had Charlie Hodgson not missed eight difficult kicks, Connacht would have lost by an even bigger margin.
Hodgson’s misses and two penalties from Dan Parks allowed Connacht to remain in contention for much of the first half – but it was all one-way traffic after Connacht prop Nathan White had picked up a yellow card.
Brits and the Vunipola brothers, Mako and Billy, were at the heart of a dominant home pack which enabled star performer Goode and Brad Barritt to impress in the back line.
Hodgson was wide with a long-range penalty attempt but soon after the home side led with a well-crafted try. From a scrum 35 metres out, Barritt and Mako Vunipola made penetrative runs which put the visitors’ defence on the back foot. The ball was recycled and a neat pass from Hodgson gave Ashton just enough room for the wing to squeeze in at the corner.
Hodgson missed the conversion and declined to attempt a kickable penalty as Saracens chose a more attacking option – but they were not rewarded as Billy Vunipola was unable to force his way over from a line-out five metres out.
Despite having the better of the opening quarter, Saracens trailed 6-5 at the end of it after Parks kicked his second penalty. Hodgson was successful with his third kick at goal before Saracens scored another excellent try – Goode and Hodgson making enterprising runs to provide Strettle with an easy touchdown.
Connacht suffered a further blow when White was sin-binned for stamping on Barritt in a ruck, with the TMO deciding that a yellow card was a sufficient punishment.
This proved costly as with the last play of the half, Brits finished off a line-out drive to give Saracens an 18-6 interval lead.
Within two minutes of the restart, the bonus point was in the bag. From inside his own 22, Goode ran brilliantly to evade five defenders before feeding Taylor, whose pass sent Strettle in his for his second try.
White returned but it made no difference as the irrepressible Goode again tore apart the visitors’ defence to score a superb solo try.
With the game won, Saracens made a raft of changes with five substitutions in quick succession but it did not stop their flow with Kruis forcing his way over for the try which Hodgson converted to loud cheers.
Hodgson was replaced by Farrell but this was soon reversed as Farrell left the field with a cut head.
However Saracens continued on the rampage with replacements, Wyles, Wray and De Kock all scoring tries before Strettle and Ashton crossed to ensure Connacht were routed.
The scorers:
For Saracens:
Tries: Ashton 2, Strettle 3, Brits, Goode, Kruis, Wyles, Wray, Johnston
Cons: Hodgson 3
Pen: Hodgson
For Connacht:
Pens: Parks 2
Yellow card: Nathan White (Connacht, 36 – foul play, stamping)
Teams:
Saracens: 15 Alex Goode, 14 Chris Ashton, 13 Duncan Taylor, 12 Brad Barritt, 11 David Strettle, 10 Charlie Hodgson, 9 Richard Wigglesworth, 8 Ernst Joubert, 7 Kelly Brown, 6 Billy Vunipola, 5 George Kruis, 4 Steve Borthwick (captain), 3 Matt Stevens, 2 Schalk Brits, 1 Mako Vunipola.
Replacements: 16 Jamie George, 17 Richard Barrington, 18 James Johnston, 19 Alistair Hargreaves, 20 Jackson Wray, 21 Neil de Kock, 22 Owen Farrell, 23 Chris Wyles.
Connacht: 15 Gavin Duffy, 14 Fionn Carr, 13 Robbie Henshaw, 12 Eoin Griffin, 11 Matt Healy, 10 Dan Parks, 9 Kieran Marmion, 8 John Muldoon, 7 Jake Heenan, 6 Andrew Browne, 5 Craig Clarke (captain), 4 Michael Swift, 3 Nathan White, 2 Sean Henry, 1 Brett Wilkinson.
Replacements: 16 Jason Harris-Wright, 17 Denis Buckley, 18 Rodney Ah You, 19 Mick Kearney, 20 George Naoupu, 21 Paul O'Donohoe, 22 Darragh Leader, 23 Tiernan O'Halloran.
Referee: Leighton Hodges (Wales)
Assistant referee: Gwyn Morris (Wales), Greg Morgan (Wales)
TMO: Gareth Simmonds (Wales)
Zebre 6-16 Toulouse
It was a case of "after the Lord Mayor's show" for four-times champions Toulouse, as they laboured to a Pool Three win against Zebre at Stadio XXV Aprile just a week after overpowering nearest group rivals Saracens at home to clinch a place in the last eight.
Toulouse have matched Munster's achievement of reaching the quarterfinals for the 15th time in their history and have emerged Pool winners for the 12th time in 19 seasons.
But Toulouse's 137th tournament match was anything but a stroll in the park against European novices still looking for their first competition win after 12 contests.
The French giants failed to earn a try bonus point and ended the group stages with 23 points and with home quarter-final advantage now hanging in the balance.
But all credit to the Zebre defence in restricting Toulouse to just a single try as they made a mammoth 140 tackles compared to the 60 Toulouse were called on to make.
Jean-Marc Doussain, in immaculate goal kicking form in Toulouse's Round 5 victory over Saracens, opened the scoring with a fourth minute penalty goal but although Luciano Orquera levelled matters 10 minutes later he then let Toulouse off the hook by sending his next two chances wide of the target.
Irish referee Dudley Phillips then showed a yellow card in the 32nd minute to Dries van Schalkwyk and then another for Mauro Bergamasco three minutes later which left Zebre two men short for the rest of the first half.
However, along with Gonzalo Garcia having missed their opening penalty chance before Orquera took over the kicking duties, Toulouse were struggling to take command.
And it took their two-man advantage to produce the first try, scrum half Sébastien Bézy going over in the 38th minute and the dependable Doussain adding the extra points for a 10-3 lead for the visitors at the break.
After a scoreless 10 minutes to the second half – and Zebre restored to a full compliment of 15 players – Toulouse boss Guy Noves started to introduce new faces all round but it was the Italians who got the scoreboard moving again.
A second penalty success for Orquera cut the deficit to just four points but Bezy then matched him to keep Toulouse a converted try in front and the return of Doussain to the action saw him take Toulouse further ahead with yet another penalty but dreams of a bonus point had long since vanished.
The scorers:
For Zebre:
Pens: Orquera 2
For Toulouse:
Try: Bézy
Con: Doussain
Pens: Doussain 2, Bézy
Yellow cards: Dries van Schalkwyk (Zebre, 32 repeated offences), Mauro Bergamasco (Zebre, 35 – repeated offences)
Teams:
Zebre: 15 Ruggero Trevisan, 14 Leonardo Sarto, 13 Kameli Ratuvou, 12 Gonzalo Garcia, 11 Dion Berryman, 10 Luciano Orquera, 9 Brendon Leonard, 8 Samu Vunisa 7 Dries van Schalkwyk, 6 Mauro Bergamasco, 5 George Biagi, 4 Quintin Geldenhuys (captain), 3 Dario Chistolini, 2 Tommaso D'Apice , 1 Matias Aguero.
Replacements: 16 Luciano Leibson, 17 Andrea de Marchi, 18 Luca Redolfini, 19 Emiliano Caffini, 20 Filippo Cristiano, 21 Alberto Chillon, 22 Roberto Quartaroli.
Toulouse: 15 Maxime Médard, 14 Vincent Clerc, 13 Yann David, 12 Gael Fickou, 11 Yoann Huget, 10 Jean-Marc Doussain, 9 Sebastian Bézy, 8 Louis Picamoles, 7 Thierry Dusautoir (captain), 6 Yannick Nyanga, 5 Joe Tekori, 4 Yoann Maestri, 3 Census Johnston, 2 Chiliboy Ralepelle, 1 Schalk Ferreira.
Replacements: 16 Christopher Tolofua, 17 Cyril Baille, 18 Yohan Montes, 19 Romain Millo-Chluski, 20 Yacouba Camara, 21 Jano Vermaak, 22 Clement Poitrenaud, 23 Timoci Matanavou.
Referee: Dudley Philipps (Ireland)
Assistant referees: Eddie Hogan O'Connell (Ireland), Paul Haycock (Ireland)
TMO: Marshall Kilgore (Ireland)
Cardiff Blues 13-19 Exeter Chiefs
Cardiff Blues will have to wait to find out if they have secured an Challenge Cup quarterfinal place after a narrow home defeat to Exeter Chiefs.
It didn't go to plan for the Blues, who would have ensured a continuation of European rugby had they won with three tries. They found themselves 13-0 behind and it was the visitors who edged an error-strewn encounter.
It means the Blues' fate is out of their own hands as they will have to wait on several other results before finding out if their European campaign is over. Outside half Gareth Davies missed a crucial penalty for the Blues six minutes from time that would have levelled the score but his opposite number Gareth Steenson was excellent throughout, kicking four penalties and a conversion for the Chiefs.
Despite being out of contention for an Challenge quarter-final place Exeter started with real venom and were soon in front. After going through several phases close to the Blues line lock Don Armand crashed over from close range after three minutes with Steenson adding the conversion.
Steenson was promoted to captain for the Chiefs after Dean Mumm's late withdrawal and he put the visitors in control with two further penalties. It took the Blues almost 30 minutes to threaten the Chiefs and two quickly-taken penalties sparked the home side into life.
A third penalty arrived shortly after and this time Leigh Halfpenny slotted the kick over from long-range. The penalty lifted the Blues and three minutes before the break they cut the deficit to three points thanks to an excellent finish from wing Alex Cuthbert, with Halfpenny nailing the conversion.
Halftime took the momentum out of the Blues' play and it was Exeter who once again started the better of the two sides. They failed to make the most of their possession and that allowed Halfpenny to draw things level with another long penalty on 54 minutes.
But it wasn't all square for long as Steenson nudged Exeter back in front with a penalty five minutes later. The Blues managed to drag themselves back into the game in the final 10 minutes and Chiefs scrum half Dave Lewis was shown a yellow card on 73 minutes with the visitors under pressure.
Blues outside half Davies took the resulting penalty with Halfpenny having taken a knock but he dragged his effort wide of the posts. Exeter raced down the other end and when Steenson was given the chance to make things safe he made no mistake with a penalty.
The scorers:
For Blues:
Try: Cuthbert
Con: Halfpenny
Pens: Halfpenny 2
For Exeter Chiefs:
Try: Armand
Con: Steenson
Pens: Steenson 4
Yellow card: Dave Lewis (Exeter Chiefs, 72 – repeated offences)
Teams:
Cardiff Blues: 15 Leigh Halfpenny, 14 Alex Cuthbert, 13 Gavin Evans, 12 Dafydd Hewitt, 11 Chris Czekaj, 10 Gareth Davies, 9 Lloyd Williams, 8 Robin Copeland, 7 Ellis Jenkins, 6 Macauley Cook, 5 Filo Paulo, 4 Chris Dicomidis, 3 Benoit Bourrust, 2 Kristian Dacey, 1 Sam Hobbs (captain).
Replacements: 16 Marc Breeze, 17 Thomas Davies, 18 Scott Andrews, 19 James Down, 20 Rory Watts-Jones, 21 Lewis Jones, 22 Dan Fish, 23 Richard Smith.
Exeter Chiefs: 15 Luke Arscott, 14 Fetu'u Vainikolo, 13 Sam Hill, 12 Henry Slade, 11 Matt Jess, 10 Gareth Steenson, 9 Dave Lewis, 8 Kai Horstmann, 7 Don Armand, 6 Dave Ewers, 5 Damian Welch, 4 Dean Mumm (captain), 3 Alex Brown, 2 Jack Yeandle, 1 Carl Rimmer.
Replacements: 16 Greg Bateman, 17 Luke Cowan-Dickie, 18 Lloyd Fairbrother, 19 Ben White, 20 James Phillips, 21 Will Chudley, 22 Ceri Sweeney, 23 Jason Shoemark.
Referee: John Lacey (Ireland)
Assistant referees: Leo Colgan (Ireland), Olly Hodges (Ireland)
TMO: Kevin Beggs (Ireland)
Glasgow Warriors 8-15 Toulon
Toulon will have invaluable home advantage in the quarterfinals on the first weekend of April – thanks to the trusty boot of Jonny Wilkinson.
He kicked the defending European Cup champions to a hard-fought Pool Two victory at a soggy Scotstoun Stadium with five penalty goals and take them to 24 match points.
Toulon have now qualified for the knock-out stages in each of the three seasons in which they have taken part in Europe's premier tournament, this their 17th win in their 22nd match in the blue riband competition.
The big-spending French giants had triumphed 51-28 at Stade Felix Mayol in Round 1 but were made to work hard for the double over the battling Scottish side who scored the only try of a tight contest.
The testing conditions saw Glasgow lose the turnover count 18-9 and although Toulon captain did Wilkinson miss an opportunity to open the scoring with a drop goal attempt that failed to find the target – and there was more disappointment for the usually ace marksman when he failed with a 17th minute penalty goal chance.
It was, however, third time lucky for the World Cup winner when he landed a 27th minute penalty – only for Ruaridh Jackson to level matters three minutes later as the outside half celebrated his 100th appearances for the club with their first points to capitalise on some fine enterprising play.
Toulon's scrum power meant Wilkinson was able to strike again with the boot shortly before the break to edge the champions in front for the second time with his second penalty.
And he was right back in the groove just two minutes after the restart with his third successive success quickly followed by a fourth, Gregor Townsend electing to make three changes for the Warriors, including new half backs Chris Cusiter and Duncan Weir.
Toulon lost Sebastien Tillous-Borde for 10 minutes when English referee JP Doyle sent him off to the sin bin and both sides were a man down when Niko Matawalu joined the Toulon scrum half for a deliberate knock on.
Wilkinson duly punished the home side on the scoreboard before Stuart Hogg was off target with a drop goal attempt.
But there was better news for the Warriors with the ball in hand, a charged down kick producing a try for back rower Chris Fusaro after confirmation from the TMO.
It was brilliant opportunism by the open-side to dive over the top of a ruck and get the downward pressure but Weir failed to add the extra points and although Wilkinson then missed both penalty and drop goal attempts his boot had already done the damage.
The scorers:
For Glasgow:
Try: Fusaro
Pen: Jackson
For Toulon:
Pens: Wilkinson 5
Yellow cards: Sebastien Tillous-Borde (Toulon, 54 – foul play, late tackle), Niko Matawalu (Glasgow, 56 – professional foul, slapping down the ball)
Teams:
Glasgow: 15 Stuart Hogg, 14 Sean Maitland, 13 Sean Lamont, 12 Alex Dunbar, 11 Niko Matawalu, 10 Ruaridh Jackson, 9 Henry Pyrgos, 8 Ryan Wilson, 7 Chris Fusaro (captain), 6 James Eddie, 5 Tim Swinson, 4 Leone Nakarawa, 3 Moray Low, 2 Pat MacArthur, 1 Ryan Grant.
Replacements: 16 Dougie Hall, 17 Jerry Yanuyanutawa, 18 Ed Kalman, 19 Tom Ryder, 20 Tyrone Holmes, 21 Chris Cusiter, 22 Duncan Weir, 23 Richie Vernon.
Toulon: 15 Delon Armitage, 14 Drew Mitchell, 13 Mathieu Bastareaud, 12 Matt Giteau, 11 David Smith, 10 Jonny Wilkinson (captain), 9 Sebastien Tillous-Borde, 8 Steffon Armitage, 7 Joe van Niekerk, 6 Juan Smith, 5 Jocelino Suta, 4 Bakkies Botha, 3 Carl Hayman, 2 Craig Burden, 1 Andrew Sheridan.
Replacements: 16 Jean-Charles Orioli, 17 Xavier Chiocci, 18 Levan Chilachava, 19 Virgile Bruni, 20 Rudi Wulf, 21 Maxime Mermoz, 22 Frederic Michalak, 23 Konstantine Mikautadze.
Referee: JP Doyle (England)
Assistant referees: Martin Fox (England), Paul Dix (England)
TMO: Graham Hughes (England)
Leicester Tigers 19-22 Ulster
Ulster edged a huge European Cup encounter with Leicester Tigers to ensure they finished top of Pool Five and secured a home quarter-final in the process.
Mark Anscombe's men became the first side since Munster in 2006 to win at Welford Road in European competition as they made it six successes from six fixtures in this year's competition.
Man of the Match Ruan Pienaar scored all of his side's 22 points with a second-half try and a 100 per cent record from the tee, with Toby Flood adding four penalties and the conversion of Niall Morris' 50th minute try for the Tigers who will now be on the road in the last eight.
The first half was dominated by the boot, with Pienaar and Flood kicking a hat-trick of penalties apiece to make it 9-9 at the break.
Leicester struck first through their skipper after five minutes and the fly-half added a second six minutes later to double the advantage when Andrew Trimble and Chris Henry refused to roll away after Mat Tait was twice involved in a move that was started by Jordan Crane's short burst and clever offload.
Pienaar cut the gap to 6-3 with his opening shot at goal just past a quarter of an hour but Leicester then went close to the opening try as Kitchener was brought down just short moments after they lost No.8 Crane to injury.
Ulster stopped the initial momentum created by the Leicester lock when they won turnover ball but a big scrum from the Tigers pack resulted in a third successful kick from Flood and a 9-3 advantage.
Pienaar struck again from wide on the left after a huge driving maul was halted illegally by the hosts on 28 minutes and the Springbok star brought his side level with a huge kick three minutes later. Pienaar's effort crept over the crossbar from fully 52 metres out after Leicester held on in the tackle.
Leicester should have been in front at the interval but Flood surprisingly missed from a relatively straightforward angle on the edge of the 22 five minutes before the close of the half.
Ulster started the second period brightly but it was Leicester who were celebrating the first try when Morris touched down in the right-hand corner 10 minutes after the restart. The former Leinster wing gathered Flood's chip ahead, with the TMO confirming what the Welford Road faithful had hoped to hear before Flood slotted a superb conversion.
With Flood having opened the half with a penalty after 46 minutes, Leicester were suddenly 10 points clear and looking for all the world like pool winners.
But Ulster hit back in style as Pienaar sent over a fourth penalty with 56 minutes played, before charging down Flood's clearance and winning the race to the loose ball with ease for a try from next to nothing. The scrum-half sent over the extras from the tightest of angles just in from the right touchline to tie things up at 19-19 on the hour and the momentum was all with Ulster.
Pienaar then hit the target again from halfway to edge his side 22-19 in front with a little over 10 minutes remaining and, even though Leicester threw everything they had at the Irish outfit, Ulster held firm to record an historic victory that means they will head to the quarter-finals as the tournament's top seeds.
The scorers:
For Leicester Tigers:
Try: Morris
Con: Flood
Pens: Flood 4
For Ulster:
Try: Pienaar
Con: Pienaar
Pens: Pienaar 5
Teams:
Leicester Tigers: 15 Mathew Tait, 14 Niall Morris, 13 Matt Smith, 12 Anthony Allen, 11 Vereniki Goneva, 10 Toby Flood (captain), 9 Ben Youngs, 8 Jordan Crane, 7 Julian Salvi, 6 Jamie Gibson, 5 Graham Kitchener, 4 Ed Slater, 3 Dan Cole, 2 Tom Youngs, 1 Marcos Ayerza.
Replacements: 16 Rob Hawkins, 17 Boris Stankovich, 18 Fraser Balmain, 19 Louis Deacon, 20 Steve Mafi, 21 David Mélé, 22 Owen Williams, 23 Scott Hamilton.
Ulster: 15 Jared Payne, 14 Andrew Trimble, 13 Darren Cave, 12 Luke Marshall, 11 Craig Gilroy, 10 Paddy Jackson, 9 Ruan Pienaar, 8 Nick Williams, 7 Chris Henry, 6 Roger Wilson, 5 Dan Tuohy, 4 Johann Muller (captain), 3 John Afoa, 2 Rory Best, 1 Callum Black.
Replacements: 16 Rob Herring, 17 Tom Court, 18 Ricky Lutton, 19 Iain Henderson, 20 Robbie Diack, 21 Paul Marshall, 22 David McIlwaine, 23 Michael Allen.
Referee: Nigel Owens (Wales)
Assistant referee: Sean Brickell (Wales), Jon Mason (Wales)
TMO: Tim Hayes (Wales)
Montpellier 24-6 Benetton Treviso
Montpellier ensured they didn't go through their European Cup campaign without a home win as they ran in three tries to notch a double over their Italian counterparts to secure third position in Pool Five.
Former All Blacks wing Rene Ranger grabbed his first European Cup try to break the deadlock midway through the first half as he made the most of the one extra man the home side were enjoying at that time thanks to the sin-binning of Benetton Treviso No 8 Marco Filippucci three minutes earlier.
Montpellier were seeking to finish Pool Five as they had started, with a win over the Italians, and to end their run of successive European defeats at Stade Yves du Manoir. Home losses to Ulster and then Leicester Tigers put paid to their quarterfinal aspirations and this game was all about pride.
The home lead grew when Georgian back row star Mamuka Gorgodze powered his way over and that made it 10-0 to Montpellier at the break. Benetton got their first points on the board five minutes into the second half when Tobias Botes made up for his earlier first by kicking a penalty to make it 10-3.
Former French outside half Francois Trinh Duc failed with a couple of kicks himself before he left the fray after 49 minutes to be replaced by Ilian Perraux. Botes closed the gap further with his second successful penalty on 54 minutes.
But the home side were not to be denied and their third try of the night came after 63 minutes and rounded off a good period of pressure. Wing Lucas Dupont got the score and Eric Escande added the conversion to make it 17-6.
The visitor's cause grew all the harder when Lorenzo Cittadini was given a yellow card in the 74th minute, although it became 14 v 14 three minutes later when Charles Geli was also sent to the sideline. Montpellier then clinched the bonus point with a try fro Pierre Berard in the final play of the game which Escande converted.
The scorers:
For Montpellier:
Tries: Ranger, Gorgodze, Dupont, Berard
Con: Escande 2
For Benetton Treviso:
Pens: Botes 2
Yellow cards: Marco Filippucci (Benetton Treviso, 16), Lorenzo Cittadini (Benetton Treviso, 74), Charles Geli (Montpellier, 77)
Teams:
Montpellier: 15 Anthony Floch, 14 Rene Ranger, 13 Anthony Tuitavake, 12 Thomas Combezou, 11 Lucas Dupont, 10 Francois Trinh-Duc (captain), 9 Eric Escande, 8 Johnnie Beattie, 7 Mamuka Gorgodze, 6 Alexandre Bias, 5 Mickael Demarco, 4 Jim Hamilton, 3 Nicolas Mas, 2 Thomas Bianchin, 1 Mikheil Nariashvili.
Replacements: 16 Charles Geli, 17 Maximiliano Bustos, 18 Paea Fa'anunu, 19 Fred Quercy, 20 Thibaut Privat, 21 Iulian Perraux, 22 Pierre Berard, 23 Yoan Audrin.
Benetton Treviso: 15 Luke McLean, 14 Ludovico Nitoglia, 13 Michele Campagnaro, 12 Andrea Pratichetti, 11 Angelo Esposito, 10 James Ambrosini, 9 Tobias Botes, 8 Marco Filippucci, 7 Paul Derbyshire, 6 Christian Loamanu, 5 Valerio Bernabo (captain), 4 Marco Fuser, 3 Ignacio Fernandez Rouyet, 2 Franco Sbaraglini, 1 Alberto de Marchi.
Replacements: 16 Enrico Ceccato, 17 Michele Rizzo, 18 Lorenzo Cittadini, 19 Antonio Pavanello, 20 Francesco Minto, 21 Alessandro Zanni, 22 Fabio Semenzato, 23 Alberto Di Bernardo.
Referee: Ian Davies (Wales)
Assistant referees: Neil Hennessy (Wales), Wayne Davies (Wales)
TMO: Derek Bevan (Wales)
