Corniel van Zyl has expressed his pride in Cardiff’s character after they fought back following a nightmare start in the EPCR Challenge Cup.
It took Benetton just eight seconds to claim the first try of a helter-skelter encounter and they bagged a second inside three minutes.
Liam Belcher hit back for Cardiff but the hosts led 28-7 as the 20-minute mark approached.
At that point, it could have got very ugly for the Blue & Blacks but they kept their composure and fought tooth and nail in a hugely entertaining Round of 16 knockout.
Alun Lawrence and Ellis Bevan crossed either side of a Jacob Beetham brace, which saw Cardiff trail 38-35 in the final quarter.
They hammered at the Treviso line before the hosts escaped and with the referee refusing to go to the TMO, despite Ben Thomas’ dismay, and the game was over.
Van Zyl said: “We didn’t start well. We were three, four tries behind in the first half, but we just kept getting slowly back to what we can do.
“It was a obviously loss of concentration and focus in the beginning and we got behind and then we had to fight our way back. I am massively proud of the boys getting back in and giving us a shot at the end of the game.
“At one stage it felt like it could go to 50 points but the boys got stuck in and clawed their way back. That was very pleasing and something we are very proud of.
“With the squad we had, with a few forwards out, we had to make different plans and fair play to the boys who moved position to slot in and fight for the jersey.”
Speaking specifically on the controversial end to the encounter, which saw the French referee deny the opportunity to check the TMO, van Zyl added: “It’s a tough one to take because there’s different rules and set-up between the URC and Europe.
“We understand but it feels like we could have had a look at the last one. You never know, it could have been a try and that would have won it.”
With Cardiff now out of Europe, they have a week off with no fixtures, before a crucial Welsh derby double header against the Scarlets and then the Ospreys.
The silver-lining of losing in Treviso, the opportunity to rest a battered and bruised squad.
Van Zyl added: “After South Africa, a lot of travelling and again this week, a lot of travelling, of course we are disappointed, but we have to use what is front of us to make sure we finish well in the URC.
“We are obviously out of Europe now, so there’s four games left in the URC so that’s what we will put our energy into.”