A radically reshaped Dragons side failed to build on their encouraging recent form as they fell to defeat at the hands of Benetton at Stadio Monigo.
The Gwent side had made 10 changes to the team that pushed the Sharks to the limit a week earlier.
But Benetton had too much for the new-look visitors as they eased to a third BKT United Rugby Championship win in four games.
Dai Flanagan's team did show improvement in the second half, with Rio Dyer and new signing Steff Hughes touching down, but the damage had been in the opening 40 as the hosts swept into a 17-0 interval lead.
What a visiting team can't do on the road against Benetton is start slowly and allow the Italians to generate momentum and feed their crowd. But no-one had told the Dragons.
The first home score came from a driving maul that ended with hooker Giacomo Nicotera ploughing over, then sweet passing allowed No. 8 Lorenzo Cannone to score out wide.
Flanagan's team found it hard to get going. They gave away too many penalties in the first half, couldn't combat Benetton's maul, made mistakes and struggled to impose themselves physically. Benetton's scrum worked well and so did their lineout.
The visitors' bench made an impact after the break, with Ross Moriarty and Bradley Roberts grafting hard, and the scores from Dyer and Hughes were well-worked, with Max Clark having a hand in both.
But either side of Hughes' five-pointer, Edoardo Padovani touched down and Mattia Bellini ensured a try bonus point for his side after being put through by wonderful passing.
SCORERS
Benetton
Tries: G. Nicotera, L. Cannone, E. Padovani, M. Bellini. Cons: T. Albernoz (4). Pens: T. Albernoz (2).
Dragons
Tries: R. Dyer, S. Hughes. Cons: JJ. Hanrahan, S. Davies.
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