Cardiff Blues ground out a 10-7 victory over Zebre in a gruelling PRO14 encounter.

A converted try from Owen Lane and a penalty from Jarrod Evans saw Cardiff earn a third consecutive victory in the competition.

The points for both sides were all scored before half-time, with Evans' 39th-minute kick proving decisive.

Cardiff racked up a 37-8 home win over the same opponents in early November but it was a different story in Parma, with points at a premium.

Lane broke the early deadlock with a 27th-minute try, taking on a pass from Rey Lee-Lo and darting through to touch down beneath the posts, allowing Evans a straightforward conversion.

Zebre had failed to take their chances until then but they soon levelled up, shortly after Aled Summerhill had a Cardiff try disallowed for failing to ground the ball to the television match official's satisfaction.

Giovanbattista Venditti intercepted a Blues pass and charged from his own half to the try line, with Guglielmo Palazzani adding the conversion.

Evans booted what proved to be the match-winning penalty to take Cardiff into the break with a slender lead.

Zebre saw plenty of the ball in the second half, creating openings but failing to find a clinical finish, allowing Cardiff to complete a league double over their hosts.