Play-off chasing Treviso hit by Benvenuti's ban

Treviso’s charge towards a first ever PRO14 play-off qualification has been hit by a two-week suspension for Tommaso Benvenuti which rules them out of their crucial April 27 showdown at Italian rivals Zebre. 

A disciplinary committee met in Edinburgh to consider the citing against Benvenuti which occurred as a result of the round 20 Guinness PRO14 fixture with Munster last Friday.

The player was reported by the match citing commissioner for an infringement of Law 9.20 – A player must not make contact with an opponent above the line of the shoulders. The player was shown a yellow card at the time by referee Ben Whitehouse.

The disciplinary committee comprising of Rory Bannerman (chair), Frank Hadden and Jennifer Rae (all Scotland) concluded that the player had committed an act of foul play.

In upholding the citing complaint, the disciplinary committee deemed that the offence merited a red card with a mid-range entry point of four weeks. 

The panel did not find any aggravating factors and applied 50 percent mitigation (two weeks) in respect of the player’s admission of facts, his previously clean disciplinary record across his career and his conduct both after the game and during the hearing.

As a result, Benvenuti is banned for a period of two weeks and will be free to play from midnight on May 5, provided Treviso reach the knockout stages of the PRO14.

Should Treviso play only one more game this season, then Benvenuti’s ban will extend to August 11 to ensure the ban covers two meaningful matches – this would cover the Italy versus Ireland fixture on August 10 in Dublin.

Treviso head into their derby showdown in third place of Conference B ahead of Edinburgh and know that a result will secure them a play-off eliminator against either Glasgow or Munster. A third place finish would also secure them automatic qualification for next season’s Champions Cup.  

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