Ospreys secured a hard fought 43-34 win over Benetton Rugby in round 1 of the 2023/24 EPCR Challenge Cup at the Swansea.com Stadium.
In a thrilling first half, Ospreys took the lead three times, only to be pegged back on each occasion.
A brace from Lake and one from prop Gareth Thomas came after sustained pressure and power from the hosts, and all three were converted by Owen Williams.
But Benetton clawed back parity each time courtesy of a brace from Onisi Rateve on the wing and one from flanker Sebastian Negri da Ollegio, with Jacob Umaga adding the extras.
The fly-half put the visitors in front for the first time on the stroke of half-time with a penalty.
The second half was just as close; a try for Paolo Odogwu was sandwiched between two more for Lake.
And Morgan Morris crowned the win with a 76th-minute try, converted by Jack Walsh, with Benetton down to 14 after a yellow card for Mirco Spagnolo.
Umaga made the last few moments interesting with a penalty in the 79th minute, but Ospreys saw it out - with Walsh scoring a penalty himself in the final seconds.
Scorers:
Ospreys: Tries: Dewi Lake (4), Gareth Thomas, Morgan Morris. Conversions: Owen Williams (4), Jack Walsh. Penalty: Jack Walsh.
Benetton: Tries: Onisi Ratave (2), Sebastian Negri da Ollegio, Paolo Odogwu. Conversions: Jacob Umaga (4). Penalties: Jacob Umaga (2).
Teams:
Ospreys: 15 Iestyn Hopkins, 14 Luke Morgan, 13 George North, 12 Owen Watkin, 11 Keelan Giles, 10 Owen Williams, 9 Reuben Morgan-Williams, 8 Morgan Morris, 7 Jac Morgan, 6 Rhys Davies, 5 Adam Beard, 4 James Fender, 3 Tom Botha, 2 Dewi Lake, 1. Gareth Thomas. Replacements: 16 Sam Parry, 17 Nicky Smith, 18 Ben Warren, 19 Harri Deaves, 20 Tristan Davies, 21 Luke Davies, 22 Jack Walsh, 23 Mat Protheroe.
Benetton: 15 Edoardo Padovani, 14 Paolo Odogwu, 13 Nacho Brex, 12 Malakai Fekitoa, 11 Onisi Ratave, 10 Jacob Umaga, 9 Andy Uren, 8 Lorenzo Cannone, 7 Michele Lamaro, 6 Sebastian Negri da Ollegio, 5 Federico Ruzza, 4 Niccolo Cannone, 3 Giosue Zilocchi, 2 Gianmarco Lucchesi, 1. Thomas Gallo. Replacements: 16 Bautista Bernasconi, 17 Mirco Spagnolo, 18 Filippo Alongi, 19 Gideon Koegelenberg, 20 Riccardo Favretto, 21 Toa Halafihi, 22 Sam Hidalgo-Clyne, 23 Leonardo Marin.
