Munster are still challenging strongly but their fate is not in their hands and Italian team Benetton hold all the aces in the race to make the Rainbow Cup grand final against the winners of the South African leg of the competition.
Munster coach Johan van Graan would have fancied his team’s chances of staying top of the log after his men came from behind to beat Cardiff Blues at the start of the weekend to edge ahead of Benetton. His team were rocked by Connacht in their previous game so their rival Irish province went to Treviso with some momentum.
However, the determined Treviso outfit just refused to accept second place as their aggressive defence and abrasive forward effort overcame an error-ridden Connacht a day later. Both teams exchanged early tries but it was Benetton who were the more disciplined, both with their defensive effort and all-round, after that.
Two Paolo Garbisi penalties ensured Benetton went in at the break 11-7 up and although Connacht challenged and wasted a few scoring opportunities it was always Benetton who had their noses in front and looked likely winners as Garbisi added three more kicks in the second half to put the host out of range.
The win means Benetton, who have former Stormers scrumhalf Dewald Duvenhage in excellent form with his tactical game at present, remain the only unbeaten team in either leg of the competition that will be concluded with the grand final against the South African winners on 19 June.
It was announced before the weekend that the final would take place in Benetton’s home stadium in Treviso, something which has surely added to their motivation to finish top. They would have been rank outsiders when the competition started as they struggled in the PRO14 and didn’t win a game. However, playing their last competition under new Italy coach Kieran Crowley, they have been a revelation and have their fate in their hands as a win over Ospreys in their final game on 12 June will be enough for them to clinch top spot.
Munster, who are now three log points behind Benetton but in second place ahead of Glasgow Warriors by virtue of points difference, finish off by travelling to Zebre the previous day. They will be expected to beat Zebre while Benetton will face a big challenge in Wales so the competition is still wide open, but Benetton continue to confound the critics and in their current mood no-one will write off their chances of notching the win they need to make the final.
That Munster are even still in the race is because of a late comeback in an exciting game at their home base of Thormond Park against a Cardiff Blues side that led until Munster replacement Keynan Knox rumbled over for the winning try six minutes before the end. It looked like Munster were going to win easily when they led 21-10 at halftime but Cardiff exploited the period that Munster were down to 14 men because of a yellow card to score two converted tries that propelled them into 24-21 lead.
The win was a fitting Thormond Park send-off for the retiring Munster duo of CJ Stander and Tommy O’Donnell, who now have a chance to make it an even more glorious send-off by winning the competition on the road.
Meanwhile Glasgow Warriors kept to the theme of an exciting weekend by coming from behind to beat the Dragons at Cardiff City Stadium in the late game on Saturday to keep their challenge very much alive. Glasgow struggled with the pace that the Dragons played the game initially but were the dominant team later in the game and will go into their remaining fixture against Guinness PRO14 champions Leinster with some momentum.
Speaking of Leinster, the pre-tournament favourites did not play at the weekend and have a game in hand on the other teams but with nine points from three games, meaning nine off the pace being set by Benetton, they will have to win their remaining games with a bonus point to stand any chance of making the final. At the same time, they have to hope Benetton come away from their fixture against the Ospreys without anything, not even a bonus point, and ditto their arch-rivals Munster, who would move to 19 points at minimum if they beat Zebre.
Leinster’s last game in the league phase of the competition will be against the Dragons. There were only three games at the weekend because the match between Ulster and Scarlets was cancelled due to a Covid outbreak in the Ulster camp. Scarlets were awarded four points but are well off the pace.
The South African leg of the Rainbow Cup is also coming to an exciting conclusion and this coming weekend’s games - Bulls hosting Stormers on Friday and the Sharks going to Johannesburg on Saturday - could have a big impact on who the winner will be.
WEEKEND RAINBOW CUP RESULTS:
Munster 31 Cardiff Blues 27
Benetton 20 Connacht 12
Dragons 16 Glasgow Warriors 27
Ulster v Scarlets cancelled due to Covid