Cardiff Blues return to Guinness PRO14 action with a tough trip to Treviso to take on Benetton Rugby.

Wales’ Capital Region travel to Italy with a host of senior stars missing through international commitments and injuries, but will be hoping to return to winning ways against their Conference B rivals.

John Mulvihill has named a side containing an exciting mix of youth and experience, as they seek their first win at Stadio Monigo since 2016.

Cardiff Blues: Matthew Morgan; Aled Summerhill, Rey Lee-Lo, Garyn Smith, Hallam Amos; Jason Tovey, Lloyd Williams (capt); Brad Thyer, Kirby Myhill, Scott Andrews, James Ratti, Macauley Cook, Josh Turnbull, James Botham, Will Boyde

Replacements: Liam Belcher, Rhys Gill, Keiron Assiratti, Shane Lewis-Hughes, Alun Lawrence, Lewis Jones, Ben Thomas, Jason Harries.

Benetton Rugby: Jayden Hayward; Ratuva Tavuyara, Ignacio Brex, Alberto Sgarbi (capt), Monty Ioane; Tommaso Allan, Dewaldt Duvenage; Nicola Quaglio, Hame Faiva, Marco Riccioni, Irné Herbst, Eli Snyman, Marco Lazzaroni, Abraham Steyn, Toa Halafihi

Replacements: Federico Zani, Cherif Traore, Tiziano Pasquali, Niccolò Cannone, Federico Ruzza, Tito Tebaldi, Ian Keatley, Luca Sperandio

From the Vault: Benetton Rugby 28 Cardiff Blues 34 (November 2016)

It was a stunning victory for Danny Wilson’s Cardiff Blues at Stadio Monigo in 2016.

The visitors got off to a flier in Italy as debutant Rhun Williams crossed for a well-worked early try.

However, the hosts bounced back in impressive fashion, and had a bonus point in the bag early in the second half, with Abraham Steyn, Dean Budd, Michael Tagicakibau and Alberto Sgarbi dotting down.

Wilson’s side, who kept in touch thanks to the boot of Steven Shingler, showed their character, however, to flip the scores thanks to tries from Macauley Cook and Willis Halaholo, who also made his long-awaited debut for the Blues that evening.

Head-to-Head: Monty Ioane v Aled Summerhill

Aled Summerhill has been in fine form over the past year for his home region, and has once again kick-started this campaign in impressive fashion.

The wing has an eye for the try line and is the Blues’ top try scorer, crossing on four occasions taking his record to an impressive 24 tries in 58 appearances.

Monty Ioane, who arrived at Treviso in 2017, has been one of the shining stars of the Guinness PRO14 since his arrival.

He’s one of the Championship’s biggest attacking threats and was named in last season’s PRO14 Team of the Season.