Not to be for Lions as they succumb to fifth loss in a row

MATCH REPORT: Benetton moved up to fifth position in the United Rugby Championship with their impressive 42-31 victory over the Lions at Ellis Park on Saturday.

It was the Lions’ fifth defeat in a row, and they were just not convincing as they bid farewell to their Top Eight chances.

The first few minutes belonged to the homeside as they had ball in hand and were giving it air.

After five minutes, Benetton got into the action and moved into the Lions’ half of the field as the two teams got a feel for each other.

But an error earned Kade Wolhuter a shot at goal, almost 60 metres out.

The prodigious boot of the flyhalf was on point as he sent it high and clear through the posts, and the Lions took the early lead.

And then the softest of tries went to Benetton flyhalf Jacob Umaga after an up-and-under, with no Lions player taking ownership of it. Umaga merely gathered and galloped through.

After ten minutes, it was Benetton 7-3 Lions

Then up stepped Umaga again and sent a bomb of a touch kick into the Highveld sky for an attacking opportunity for the visitors five metres out after a high tackle by the Lions.

It was well worked, and Ignacio Mendy got over in the opposite corner after a skip pass found him out wide.

Another 22 visit resulted in a try for Benetton.

The Lions lost their captain, Francke Horn, in the 15th minute, replaced by Sibabalo Qoma.

The indiscretions by the Lions continued, and this time it was JC Pretorius playing the ball on the ground. Umaga made no mistake with the three-pointer.

Another penalty by the Lions meant another score for the visitors. This time, Paolo Odogwu ran a brilliant line and linked up with his fullback Leonardo Marin, who scored.

Without their captain Horn, the Lions urgently needed someone to take ownership and lead by example.

And they did so with a powerful maul to get Ruan Venter over the line.

Ultimate team play from @BenettonRugby ⚡️

The visitors are not holding back today 💪#BKTURC #URC | #LIOvBEN pic.twitter.com/nMPWQeTigd

— BKT United Rugby Championship (URC) (@URCOfficial) April 19, 2025

The conversion was good, and the Lions were trailing 10-22 after 30 minutes of play.

Then, Umaga sent another penalty kick smack bang through the middle of the posts to stretch their lead to 25-10.

The Lions’ indecisiveness resulted in another Benetton try as Mendy raced to the line after another turnover ball.

Just before half-time, Morne van den Berg popped a speculative box kick over the top, resulting in an awful bounce for the defense.

Marius Louw was the first to dot the ball down.

The halftime score of 17-32 flattered the Lions after a very sloppy and ill-disciplined first half.

The visitors continued the second half where they left off, and within four minutes, captain Federico Ruzza crashed over in the corner after another slick break by Mendy.

Minutes later, Ruzza got his marching orders for a deliberate knockdown.

The homeside showed more urgency and almost got over the line and won a penalty. Wolhuter found a good touch finder.

They set up the driving maul, Benetton won the penalty but their replacement hooker joined his captain fieldside after a head clash with Van den Berg.

Now it was 15 players against 13, and the Lions had the best opportunity. They tried a maul, and then Louw senselessly kicked the ball aimlessly over the dead-ball line.

A second Benetton player got sent to the sin bin for a dangerous tackle, and it was back to 13 men for the visitors.

Eventually, the Lions crossed the tryline by way of Edwill van der Merwe from a scrum five metres out.

The Lions were crawling back their way into the game, closing the gap to 24-39.

A knock by Van den Berg from the kick-off put the pressure back on the Lions and a scrum followed in their half of the field.

The Italians won the penalty from the scrum, and Umaga split the poles for three more points and stretched the gap to 18 points again.

The Lions’ woes even went as far as their normally very strong scrums as they conceded one penalty after another in that department.

Meanwhile, the pack of Benetton was exceptional, winning turnovers and standing strong in scrums and mauls.

Finally, JC Pretorius got a try, five minutes before full-time, and consolation for all the hard work he put in on the day.

Scorers:

For Lions:
Tries: Venter, Louw, Van der Merwe, Pretorius
Cons: Wolhuter 4
Pen: Wolhuter

For Benetton:
Tries: Umaga, Mendy 2, Marin, Ruzza
Cons: Umaga 4
Pens: Umaga 3

Yellow cards: Federico Ruzza (for Benetton – deliberate knockdown 45’); Siua Maile (for Benetton – dangerous tackle 59’)

Teams

Lions: 15 Quan Horn, 14 Tapiwa Mafura, 13 Rynhardt Jonker, 12 Marius Low, 11 Edwill van der Merwe, 10 Kade Wolhuter, 9 Morné van den Berg, 8 Francke Horn (captain), 7 Ruan Venter, 6 JC Pretorius, 5 Darrien Landsberg, 4 Ruben Schoeman, 3 Asenathi Ntlabakanye, 2 PJ Botha, 1 Juan Schoeman.
Replacements: 16 Jaco Visagie, 17 SJ Kotze, 18 RF Schoeman, 19 Ruan Delport, 20 Sibabalo Qoma, 21 Nico Steyn, 22 Renzo du Plessis, 23 Kelly Mpeku.

Benetton: 15 Leonardo Marin, 14 Ignacio Mendy, 13 Tommaso Menoncello, 12 Ignacio Brex, 11 Paolo Odogwu, 10 Jacob Umaga, 9 Alessandro Garbisi, 8 Lorenzo Cannone, 7 Manuel Zuliani, 6 Riccardo Favretto, 5 Federico Ruzza (captain), 4 Niccolò Cannone, 3 Simone Ferrari, 2 Bautista Bernasconi, 1 Thomas Gallo.
Replacements: 16 Siua Maile, 17 Ivan Nemer, 18 Giosué Zilocchi, 19 Scott Scrafton, 20 Eli Snyman, 21 Michele Lamaro, 22 Andy Uren, 23 Rhyno Smith

Referee: Craig Evans (Wales)
Assistant referees: Griffin Colby (South Africa), Hanru van Rooyen (South Africa)
TMO: Adam Jones (Wales)