Dragons Draw URC Opener with Benetton After Late Drama

Tinus de Beer missed an 80th-minute conversion attempt that would have given Dragons a winning start to the United Rugby Championship season against Benetton. The match in Treviso ended in a 19-19 draw.

Benetton led 19-7 at halftime with tries from Francois Mey, Bautista Bernasconi, and Ignacio Mendy. Tinus de Beer scored Dragons' first-half try. Fine Inisi narrowed the deficit early in the second half, and hooker Elliot Dee then went over to level the scores.

Despite a spirited second-half fightback, De Beer’s challenging conversion from the right hit the post, leaving the sides sharing the points. Benetton, coached by former Wales boss Wayne Pivac, felt they should have secured a victory after holding a significant halftime lead.

Dragons showed resilience to stay in contention but will view the match as a missed opportunity. They now face a favorable run of five home games in Wales.

In the first half, Benetton's pack applied pressure, leading to Mey's debut try and Bernasconi's score from a driving line-out. De Beer's try came after good play from Seb Davies and Thomas Young. Handling errors and defensive lapses allowed Mendy to score Benetton's third try just before halftime.

Dragons started the second half strongly, with Inisi scoring in the corner. A try for Che Hope was disallowed due to a knock-on in the build-up. The team's ability to offload, which was less evident last season, helped them secure the late try.

Jacob Umaga missed a long-range penalty for Benetton, leaving the door open for Dragons. The team's subsequent try from a driving line-out set up the final, decisive conversion attempt.

In the closing moments, Wales wing Rio Dyer opted to kick the ball out rather than pursue a potential winning opportunity.

Dragons have a foundation to build on, with all their upcoming matches in the initial block of the season scheduled for Wales. They are set to face Scarlets and Ospreys in upcoming URC derbies.

Benetton: Gallagher; Mendy, Mey, Odogwu, Ratave; Umaga, Uren; Medrano, Bernasconi, Ferrari, Midena, Ruzza, Marini, Zuliani, Negri (capt). Replacements: Gasperini, Nemer, Gallorini, Gritti, Miranda, Maile, Werchon, Smith.

Dragons: Anderson; Dyer, Inisi, Owen (co-capt), Tuitavuki; de Beer, R Williams; Martinez, Burrows, Coleman, Langton-Cryer, S Davies, Woodman, Young (co-capt), Minto. Replacements: Dee, W Jones, Hunt, Lewis-Hughes, Beddall, Hope, J Lloyd, Paea.

Referee: Christopher Allison (South Africa)

Assistants: Alex Frasson & Dario Merli (Italy)

TMO: Marius Jonker (South Africa)