They were so close to a win but Pat Lam’s Connacht will have been delighted to have secured the point necessary to reach the Guinness Pro12 semi-finals for the first time.
The job looked to have been done by Connacht when, leading Treviso 21-19 at the very end of the game, they gave away a penalty right on the half-way line.
As the clock ticked deep into the 81st minute, New Zealander Jayden Hayward stepped up and displayed impeccable composure to welly the game-winning penalty between the posts.
While Treviso were celebrating the victory that dragged them off the foot of the Pro12 table, Connacht will have left the Stadio Comunale di Monigo content with the knowledge that they had guaranteed their place in the semi-finals for the first time since the competition’s change of format over a decade ago.
Pat Lam named a relatively weakened team for the trip to Italy but you wouldn’t have guessed it, judging by their start to the game as they stormed into a 14-0 lead in the opening quarter with tries from Rory Parata and Fionn Carr who crossed within minutes of one another.
The hosts battled back to within touching distance as Luca Morisi and Braam Steyn scored a try apiece to bring the score to 14-12 at the break.
Treviso took the lead for the first time early on in the second half when they were awarded a penalty try following some dominance in the scrum.
Peter Robb cancelled that score out with a beautiful try of his own and John Cooney converted his third in a row to make it 21-19 and almost thirty minutes passed with Connacht defending their lead admirably.
But indiscipline and a lack of concentration in the scrum at the death gave the hosts the chance to boot their way to victory and they duly accepted the offer via the cannon of Hayward’s boot.
"We weren't clinical enough and we blew so many scoring chances." – Pat Lam post match #CRLive
— Connacht Rugby (@connachtrugby) April 29, 2016
"We determined to fix this and take the learnings for what will be a massive week." – Pat Lam #CRLive
— Connacht Rugby (@connachtrugby) April 29, 2016
Connacht will host Glasgow Warriors, who recorded a whopping 70-10 victory on Friday night, next Saturday which could decide whether Pat Lam’s side will be home or away in their semi-final.
