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The win over Black Lion in Tbilisi closed Benetton’s pre-season. In episode 40 of Divagazioni di Rugby, DanPat and Cristian Lovisetto went back to that match from a different angle: not the result, but the pecking order Wayne Pivac is building a week out from the URC opener against the Dragons.
The scrum delivered, and that was not a given
DanPat’s verdict was explicit: “If I’d been Wayne Pivac before the game with my checklist of things to take away, I think I’d have ticked almost all of it by the end.” The scrum functioned against Georgian opponents, who give nothing away in that department, and it functioned without Mirco Spagnolo: Matias Medrano was good, described as “a proper tractor” on the loosehead side, and Simone Ferrari was better still, rediscovered in dominant form. The second unit with Marcos Gallorini also impressed.
On the props, the two read the loosehead side as already well covered: with Spagnolo to return, there are also Medrano, Ivan Nemer and Destiny Aminu. Tiziano Pasquali, in DanPat’s view, will be valuable to the group but used sparingly.
The Gritti case, and a line from his father
The most entertaining chapter concerns the lineout. Both noted the ease with which Piero Gritti took charge of the throws, calling and winning them on his first outing of the season. The permit player, born in 2005 and son of Andrea Gritti, capped fifteen times by Italy, arrives after three seasons with Clermont’s Espoirs and has just signed for Rangers Rugby Vicenza while keeping his link with Treviso.
Lovisetto told the story of the Monigo friendly against Zebre: at half-time he ran into Gritti’s father in the stand and asked whether it was not too early for Piero to be calling the lineouts already. The answer, with a father’s pride: “He calls them and he wins them.” Their point is that while sending him to Vicenza for game time makes sense, he should still get a few calls at Treviso during the season.
Five scrum-halves: the order, for now
Benetton have five number nines on the books for 2026-2027: Andy Uren, Alessandro Garbisi, Australian Louis Werchon and permit players Cristiano Tizzano and Mattia Andretti. “In terms of numbers at least, Benetton are covered,” DanPat noted, before adding a technical caveat: “With scrum-halves, having too many sometimes isn’t ideal, because it’s a position where you need continuity and a settled starter.”
The order suggested on air — and it should be taken for what it is, a first impression — currently has Uren ahead, then Garbisi, Werchon, Tizzano and Andretti. They take it as read that Andretti will begin the season at Mogliano.
There was an interesting nuance about second place on that list. Asked whether he was sure about Garbisi ahead of Werchon, DanPat said no, but added a reason that reaches beyond the club: “I think there’ll be a conversation between Gonzalo Quesada and Pivac; in a World Cup year it’s entirely normal for a certain number of starts to go to Alessandro Garbisi.”
Fly-half: Umaga against Jean Smith, and a boot to rediscover
The contest they expect to be most open is at ten, between Jacob Umaga and new signing Jean Smith, who arrived on a multi-year deal. “They have different characteristics,” Lovisetto observed.
The criticism of Umaga is blunt and concerns the tee: “If he wants to be the starter he needs to straighten out that boot a bit, because that was his superpower.” DanPat tried to soften it, noting that two of the three missed conversions were objectively very wide, and recalling that Thomas Ramos also struggled off the tee the same weekend. The point stands, though: when goal-kicking accuracy is your calling card, it needs finding quickly.
Notes on individuals
Among the backs, the name that impressed most was Federico Zanandrea: “He has staggering potential, but he needs polishing,” with at least a couple of jaw-dropping plays and one break that ended up in Georgian hands. Less convincing, for Lovisetto, was Matt Gallagher’s outing.
The most discussed moment remains Onisi Ratave’s interception, some seventy metres of running before Aka Tabutsadze hauled him in. The two enjoyed replaying it in theory: angle towards the corner flag, or a little grubber ahead, or slow down and take the contact. “He’d gone so deep into the red he didn’t even have time to think,” was DanPat’s conclusion. In the end Ratave stopped to congratulate his opponent.
One last note, and it counts as a correction: talking about the centres in the previous episode, the two had forgotten Leonardo Marin. More than one listener pointed it out, and the correction came live on air: Marin will lead a department that also includes Tomas Medina, Paolo Odogwu, Federico Zanandrea, new signing Josh Flook and permit player Filippo Drago.
Read also: Benetton win in Georgia against Black Lion · Benetton: the scrum-half candidates and a centre department to rebuild