Mathieu Warnier, Media365, published on Saturday January 18, 2025 at 8:35 p.m.
After Leinster, it was Benetton Treviso who won against La Rochelle (32-25) but the Maritimes secure second place in Pool 2 thanks to the defensive bonus point.
La Rochelle ends on a bad note. After the home defeat against Leinster last weekend, the Maritimes had to get back on track at Benetton Treviso to reach the round of 16 of the Champions Cup in front of their home crowd. But success was not on the side of the former double winner of the competition. The start of the match was lively. A missed tackle by Tawera Kerr-Barlow caused Tommaso Menoncello to go off injured after a head-to-head collision. The La Rochelle scrum half then received a yellow card. Despite this numerical inferiority, Ronan O'Gara's players kept the ball and pushed the Benetton Treviso defense to the ground twice. In the space of five minutes, Antoine Hastoy scored six points but this advantage did not last very long. On one of the first major offensives on the Italian side, Niccolo Cannone found space then, thanks to a clever pass feint, he opened the way to the goal for the first try of the match, transformed by Tomás Albornoz. Shortly after halfway through the first half, the Argentine striker added three points for the transalpine team. Which caused the awakening of La Rochelle with Jack Nowell in charge.
-Kerr-Barlow carried La Rochelle
At the end of a long action initiated by Uini Atonio, the English winger went to queen in the corner, which did not make life easier for Antoine Hastoy, whose transformation missed the target. The Maritimes then saw Dillyn Leyds leave the pitch for the concussion protocol then Tomas Albornoz let slip three points on his foot. But it was Benetton Treviso who had the last word in this first period. On the siren, Rhyno Smith took over from his teammate to pass a penalty 35 meters from the poles and allow his team to take the lead by two units. As soon as the restart, Tomas Albornoz adjusted his sights again to increase the score but La Rochelle immediately came back to match. Having followed an advance from his forwards, Tawera Kerr-Barlow took advantage of the surrounding chaos to flatten La Rochelle's second try. Within his reach, the transformation was successful by Antoine Hastoy, who then allowed the Maritimes to regain the advantage on the scoreboard. Which only lasted four minutes, time for Rhyno Smith to pass his second penalty. Both teams began to open their benches when the Benetton Treviso fullback stood out in a surprising manner. He did not respect the time limit of 60 seconds to take a penalty, giving the ball back to the Rochelais on a scrum.
Benetton Treviso didn't win everything
In the process, Tawera Kerr-Barlow went for his double, showing himself clever by quickly playing a penalty to deceive the vigilance of the Italian defense. Transalpines who came close to three points before equalizing shortly after the hour mark through the boot of Rhyno Smith. Meanwhile, prop Giosue Zilocchi received a yellow card for a dangerous tackle on Jack Nowell. The end of the match turned in favor of Benetton Treviso, who took back the lead in the score a little less than a quarter of an hour from the siren. At the end of a long sequence of upwind play, pillar Bautista Bernasconi forced his way to the promised land to allow his team to go ahead by seven points. Wanting to leave with better than the defensive bonus point, the Rochelais pushed to the end but ran into a wall. Benetton Treviso won (32-25) but did not dislodge the Maritimes from second place in Pool 2. Indeed, the defensive bonus taken this Saturday allowed Ronan O'Gara's players to finish tied on points with the Transalpines and, in the game of points difference, it is the Rochelais who finish second behind Leinster, easy winner of Bath (47-21). Results which also do the business of Clermont, who will compete well in the round of 16 thanks to their fourth place.
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