But ultimately those critics were proved wrong as Leinster went on to lift the Heineken Cup as well as reaching the Grand Final against Munster.
Despite that success Schmidt still wears the scars from that loss, in the third game of last season to the Italian newcomers, and was relieved to see tries from Leo Auva'a, Fionn Carr and Eoin O'Malley ensure lightning didn't strike twice.
And while it might not have ranked as one of Leinster's performances of the season, Schmidt was still mightily satisfied to come away with the victory.
He said: "We know how good Treviso can be and we were motivated by that fear. Last year I was asked if this was the beginning of a slump in Leinster rugby.
"I am happy to say that it wasn't in light of the silverware we managed to collect at the end of the season.
"And of course we've won nothing yet, and there's still a long way to go this season, but I am very happy with that performance."
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