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Benetton fly-half Tomas Albornoz has tallied 24 points in this season's EPCR Challenge Cup
Two sides will look for their first EPCR Challenge Cup wins of the campaign as Aviron Bayonnais welcome Benetton Rugby on Saturday evening.
Bayonne will hope for an improved performance back in the home comforts of the Stade Jean Dauger, having fallen to a 39-7 defeat at Scarlets in Round 1.
Benetton face successive away trips, with their opening night encounter with Stade Français Paris ending in a 24-14 loss.
The Pool B match kicks off at 17:30 (UK & Irish time) and can be watched at epcrugby.tv or on FloRugby.
Big @bundeeaki12 is back for @connachtrugby 💪
While Jack Dempsey returns for @GlasgowWarriors and Pieter Jansen van Vuren for @LionsRugbyCo 🙌
R2 #ChallengeCupRugby Friday night team news ➡️ https://t.co/xoJjWma0Bu pic.twitter.com/SbLSa2mBeL
— EPCR Challenge Cup (@ChallengeCup_) December 15, 2022
Aviron Bayonnais
- Aviron Bayonnais were the only side to concede two yellow cards in Round 1.
- They retained a round-high 22 per cent of their restarts against the Scarlets.
- They had more mauls in the opposition 22 than any other team, with seven, and scored one maul try.
- They did, however, drop the ball unforced nine times – the most in Round 1.
Benetton Rugby
- Benetton Rugby conceded only seven penalties in Round 1 – the fewest of any team.
- They won 14 turnovers against Stade Français Paris – the highest total in the opening round.
- Federico Ruzza won 12 lineouts – the most of any player in the first weekend of matches.
Rhyno Smith crossed twice for Benetton at Bayonne
Benetton Rugby recorded their first win in this season’s EPCR Challenge Cup as they thrashed Aviron Bayonnais 45-7 at Stade Jean Dauger on Saturday.
The Italian side went down on the road to Stade Français Paris last weekend, but Bayonne proved a much happier hunting ground as Rhyno Smith, Lorenzo Cannone and Onisi Ratave crossed in the first half.
And all three try scorers crossed again in the second half, with Sam Hidalgo-Clyne adding another to round off a resounding win.
Rhyno coming through! 🦏
📺 Watch live on https://t.co/pIAnPRADS1 and @FloRugby #ChallengeCupRugby | @BenettonRugby pic.twitter.com/B6DZXywb0f
— EPCR Challenge Cup (@ChallengeCup_) December 17, 2022
Pierre Huguet had opened the scoring for Bayonne inside a minute, with Thomas Acquier also crossing as the hosts enjoyed a fast start.
However, they faded over the course of the game as they fell to the back-to-back defeats.
The two sides face off again in Round 3, with Bayonne travelling to Treviso on January 14.
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