Connacht 22-20 Zebre: Province end season with laboured win over Zebre
- Published
Eoghan Masterson scored Connacht's third try on his 119th and final appearance for the province
United Rugby Championship: Connacht v Zebre |
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Connacht (17) 22 |
Tries: Marmion, Murray, E Masterson, Porch Con: Carty |
Zebre (8) 20 |
Tries: Pani, Nocera, Lucchin Con: Canna Pen: Canna |
Connacht made heavy weather of putting away Zebre in their final game of the 2021-22 season but did enough to claim a bonus-point win at the Sportsground.
The hosts led from the seventh minute onward against the United Rugby Championship's bottom side.
Kieran Marmion, Niall Murray and Eoghan Masterson all crossed for the Irish side before Lorenzo Pani replied.
Matteo Nocera and Enrico Lucchin scored late after John Porch had extended Connacht's lead.
The win means Connacht have finished 12 in the maiden URC campaign, with nine victories and nine defeats from their 18 matches, while Zebre are left with a solitary win.
As has been the case for much of the season, the Irish province produced some sparkling moments in attack but found their momentum stifled by a high error count.
A fast start saw them take a 10-point lead inside 17 minutes as Marmion's opener was followed by Murray's score, as the lock added the finishing touch to a rampaging Cian Prendergast run.
The Galway crowd reserved their biggest cheer for the third try from Masterson, who signed off on his Connacht career by charging over from a maul on his 119th and final appearance.
Pani burst between two poor tackles to put the visitors on the board before half-time, but when Porch seared down the right for the best score of the game nine minutes into the second half, Connacht were well on their way to victory.
Unforced errors would however allow Zebre a route back into the game, and the Italian side took chunks out of Connacht's lead through Nocera and then Lucchin, who dived over in the corner with two minutes remaining.
Connacht: McNulty; Porch, Farrell, Daly, Wootton; Carty, Marmion; Buckley, Tierney-Martin, Bealham, Thornbury, Murray; E Masterson, S Masterson, Prendergast.
Replacements: Heffernan, Burke, Illo, Dillane, Papalii, Reilly, Fitzgerald, Arnold.
Zebre: Pani; Tuivaka, Smith, Lucchin, Trulla; Canna, Casilio; Fischetti, Bigi, Bello, Sisi, Zambonin; Andreani, Bianchi, Fox-Matamua.
Replacements: Ribaldi, Buonfiglio, Nocera, Krumov, Vintcent, Ceciliani, Fusco, Laloifi.