**Having not played since Round 3, Benetton return to action on Monday night as they visit a Cardiff Blues side looking to put an end to a three-match losing run.** The Italian outfit are the only side yet to win in the Guinness PRO14 this season – with the caveat that they have played the fewest matches – and will hope to come back refreshed and revitalised following their Covid- enforced break. The game is being played at the Blues' temporary base of Rodney Parade, where Benetton have fond recent memories after beating Dragons 37-25 there in March. **What’s at stake?** For the hosts, this is a chance to get back on track. Everything seemed rosy in the Blues garden when they won their opening two games of the season but they are yet to taste success since after three testing assignments against Munster, Ulster and Edinburgh. They failed to get on the scoreboard in the most recent of those defeats in the fog at BT Murrayfield and John Mulvihill will be eager for his side to recapture the cutting edge that saw them score six tries in two games against Connacht and Munster in October. The Blues have not lost successive home games since November 2019 and their defeat at the hands of Ulster in Round 4 ended a five-match unbeaten streak for Blues at Rodney Parade. Benetton, meanwhile, are relishing the opportunity to get stuck in again as they look for a change in fortunes. They showed plenty of attacking promise in their opening two games against last season’s Finalists, scoring 24 points against Ulster and 25 when Leinster came to Treviso, but lost on both occasions and were flat in their 10-3 reverse against Scarlets in Round 3. They have beaten the Blues just once in the last seven meetings between the two sides but have won two of their most recent three away games in the Guinness PRO14 – including the aforementioned victory over Dragons at Rodney Parade last season. **What happened last time they met?** Cardiff Blues staged a dramatic second half comeback to claim the spoils when Benetton visited the Arms Park in February.
