Assistant coach Scott Andrews is expecting a physical battle when Cardiff face Benetton at the Stadio Monigo on Saturday night.
The Italian outfit have a large squad to pick from and many of their Italian internationals have already returned after the Six Nations, making guessing their side very difficult.
However, Andrews pinpointed their pack as a strength, which the Blue and Blacks will have to negate.
“They’ve got a large squad so selection-wise we’re not sure in terms of personnel but they have a very big pack that’s direct, a very good set piece,” said Andrews.
“Statistically from a scrum point of view they were the best in the league if not the best.
“They’re a very disciplined team this year. I think they’re top of the stats for discipline which is something potentially historically we didn’t associate with Treviso, so we have to work on that.
“And then I just think they’ve got, a big squad, a lot of quality, so we’ll see who’s selected. But definitely from a forward point of view, we’re expecting a big set piece and a big physical battle, especially at the contact area.”
Cardiff head into the game on the back of a crucial victory over Emirates Lions, which moved them into 5th place in the BKT United Rugby Championship table.
Andrews was delighted with the resilience the team showed in defence where they made 224 tackles.
“It was a great victory, very tough game with a very tight ending,” added Andrews.
“We had a three-week build-up so we put lot of emphasis on it and there’s not many left at the arms park so we’re really happy for the boys with the effort they put in to get over the line.
“We don’t talk about results too much but with the players, we wanted to talk about putting bit of pressure on ourselves.
“We said we knew that if we win that game, it gives us a good chance and if we lost that game, it would be very difficult to keep going towards that top eight.
“So we put a bit of pressure on ourselves and I think the boys delivered, to be fair.
“I think we defended very well. They had a lot more possession than us over the course of the game.
“I can’t remember the full number, maybe 200 tackles, which is obviously a lot for a defence.
“There was a lot of kicking in the second half, a lot of kick chase, but we do lot of work on that and the boys pride themselves on the work off the ball so there’s definitely a lot of work gone in there, even for the outside backs as well as the forwards.
“To put a defensive shift in like that, where they have 60% possession definitely took his toll.
Andrews praised the performance of Alun Lawrence who made 28 tackles of his own in the game.
He believes the big number eight is reaping the benefits from his work ethic and improving his conditioning.
“He comes from the academy and Alun is a Llantrisant boy like myself, so I’ve known him for quite a while.
“I’ve never really coached him as a youngster but I’ve known him for quite a while and you could tell he had a good rugby brain, a good work ethic and obviously he was going really well at Jersey.
“I think that’s the while he came here and he just kept his head down, worked hard, think the condition had gone in him a bit for first couple of months.
“I felt he needed to be reconditioned a little bit and to be fair, I think that’s showing through now.
“He’s delivering week after week at the moment.