IAN McKINLEY PLAYED a key role last night as Benetton Treviso staged a superb comeback before holding out with only 13 men in the dying stages to secure a surprise 17-20 Guinness Pro14 win away to Edinburgh.
The visitors had lost their two outings this season ahead of the trip to Myreside, while Edinburgh had won both previous matches, but the tables were turned in stunning fashion.
It looked as though Edinburgh would continue their 100% start as they took a 14-0 lead midway through the opening half, Chris Dean crossing the whitewash on both occasions.
But Angelo Esposito’s converted score and a penalty from 27-year-old Dubliner McKinley ensured the deficit was just four at the break. That combination of a McKinley kick and an Esposito try proved fruitful again in the second half for the visitors, who took a 20-14 lead.
Duncan Weir brought Edinburgh back to within three from the tee but, although Treviso saw Cherif Traore and Alberto De Marchi sin-binned in the final five minutes, the visitors’ 13 men held on grimly for a famous win.
McKinley, who finished the game with 10 of Treviso’s 10 points, took to Instagram to hail the result as “a beautiful victory.”
“It was a pleasure to be on the field,” said the former Leinster out-half.
With the exception of fixtures against their Italian rivals Zebre, Treviso hadn’t won an away game in the competition since they defeated the Scarlets in Wales in May 2013.
