All the action from Scarlets’ big Euro win over Bath
SCARLETS produced one of their finest performances in European combat with a dazzling bonus-point triumph over Bath at The Rec to move into top spot in Pool Five of Champions Cup.
The Llanelli club side had won 27-10 with a virtual error-free performance in the quarter-final of the tournament 16 years ago as their pack dominated for Stephen Jones to land eight penalties and a drop goal.
Former Wales captain Jones is now backs coach of the Scarlets and his charges produced some sizzling rugby to score tries through Tadhg Beirne, Paul Asquith, Hadleigh Parkes and Scott Williams with Dan Jones hitting the target with three conversions and three penalties.
They led 29-3 with 22 minutes remaining and their vast legion of supporters in a sell-out crowd of 13,822 seemed to take over the famous old ground with their singing and passion.
The 15-man running produced by the Scarlets was like watching the top drawer of the crack Super Rugby tournament and everybody played a part with the scrum and lineout firing, and backs shining with a little help from forwards who made key decision and passes in midfield.
And it means victory over another former European champion in Toulon in Llanelli next Saturday in a clash that deserves a sell-out crowd will put them through to the last eight as group winners.
Bath suffered a blow when they lost Wales Six Nations outside-half candidate Rhys Priestland inside four minutes with what appeared to be hamstring injury but came off second best in virtually every department.
Scarlets took a seven-point lead in the 12th minute with a scintillating try.
Terrific full-back Rhys Priestland launched an arcing counter from his 22 after fielding a box-kick from Bath scrum-half Chris Cook and beat the first wave of defenders.
Lock David Bulbring played a key role in spinning the ball wide and they were away.
Left-wing Asquith was eventually tackled but Wales centre Hadleigh Parkes drove on.
The ball was switched left with a diagonal burst from outstanding flanker Aaron Shingler creating space for official man of the match Beirne, the Irishman wrong-footing Watson with a glorious side-step to score, Jones converting.
The game continued at a breakneck pace with a bulldozing burst from Bath’s England international Banahan, who was touted as English rugby’s Jonah Lomu when he first came on the scene, posing serious danger. Scotland back-rower John Barclay snuffed it out illegally by grabbing hold of Cook and was promptly sin-binned by French referee Jerome Garces.
Priestland’s replacement Freddie Burns tapped over the penalty but the Scarlets hit back almost immediately with another wonderful try.
A sustained attack, in which Shingler again made a sizeable dent in opposition ranks, culminated in a gem of a pass from Parkes putting Asquith over in the right corner.
The beauty of the build-up made a mockery of them being down to 14 men with Barclay watching from the cooler. Jones was wide with the difficult conversion but they were nine points to the good. That became 16 a few minutes later when Davies went through Cook after racing around the back of a lineout on halfway to put the supporting Parkes over for Jones to add the extras.
And they should have got a fourth when Scott Williams was put into space but he delayed what should have beein a scoring pass and it came off the covering Banahan.
Jones chipped over a penalty from in front of the sticks to make it 22-3 in their favour at the end of a supercharged and engrossing first half.
The penalty had been awarded when the Bath scrum crumbled after the aptly-named strongman Samson Lee – fit again after an Achilles’ tendon problem had kept him out of the autumn internationals – had turned on the power at tighthead prop.
A chip and chase from the excellent Asquith put them in position for the killer score and the bonus point with Patchell putting a slide-rule grubber behind the defence for Williams to joyously dive on the ball.
Banahan, with a wonderful leap and catch, and No.8 Zach Mercer scored for Bath but the final scorelines masked the dominance of the super Scarlets.