LATE DRAMA AS WALSH KICK ENDS SCARLETS’ VICTORY HOPES
THE Scarlets saw victory snatched away as Jack Walsh held his nerve to convert a last-minute try and earn the Ospreys a draw in a pulsating United Rugby Championship derby in Llanelli on Saturday.
The Ospreys looked set for victory when they led 13-6, before the Scarlets took the box seat to go 23-16 in front.
However, a last-minute yellow card for Sione Kalamafoni let the Ospreys off the hook, with debutant Walsh kicking the crucial conversion having stepped off the bench.
The visitors asserted themselves early and scored the first try shortly after George North snuffed out an early probing kick from Sam Costelow that was chased heartily by Johnny Mcnicholl.
There was nothing too flash about the Ospreys but the simple things were done well.
Hugely exciting prospect Joe Hawkins crashed up the middle in the seventh minute and Jac Morgan carried around the corner. Suddenly Keelan Giles was outside Tom Rogers and he popped it inside to Gareth Anscombe, who strolled over.
The Wales pivot then converted his own try.
A few minutes later, Anscombe was once again accurate from the kicking tee after Mcnicholl was caught in possession looking to launch a counter-attack and the Ospreys led 10-0 after 10 minutes.
The Scarlets missed an opportunity for their first score when fly-half Costelow fired wide with a 40-metre penalty attempt.
But minutes later he was presented with an easier opportunity and this time made no mistake.
But Anscombe re-established a 10-point lead two minutes later.
The Scarlets then suffered two further blows in quick succession.
First, flanker Tomas Lezana left the field with a leg injury to be replaced by Josh Macleod.
And then young fly-half Costelow was sent to the naughty step when he was deemed to have rolled Ospreys captain Justin Tipuric on to his head while the Ospreys flanker was plundering opposition ball in trademark fashion.
Initially, Costelow’s actions were overlooked by referee Adam Jones, but he went back to take another look on the big screen at the next break in play.
Upon rewatching the footage, he deemed it a yellow card offence.
Explaining the decision to a bemused Scarlets captain Jonathan Davies and Costelow, he said: “It is a lifting tackle, the player is low to the floor but you still lifted him above the horizontal and he’s landed dangerously.
“It’s a low degree of danger, so it’s a yellow card offence.”
After the match, Costelow, who was named man of the match, said: “It happened so fast. I didn’t mean any harm.”
In Costelow’s absence the pressure on the hosts’ line was relentless as they conceded numerous penalties.
Toby Booth’s side controlled most of the half with the Scarlets living off the scraps of their kicking game. The visitors had scrum after scrum in the home 22 but could not break down a stubborn defence.
However, referee Jones was lenient with the issue of further cards and the Scarlets were able to breathe a huge sigh of relief when Costelow returned with no damage to the scoreboard.
But chaos ensued at the end of an entertaining half.
Johnny Mcnicholl sent a kick behind the Ospreys defence and Tipuric collided with him – and it was late by anyone’s standards.
There was little mitigation as Tipuric had a full line of sight and Premier Sports commentator Tom Shanklin believed it was an avoidable collision.
But a bizarre chain of events unfolded. The hit happened in the final passage of the half and just as Jones was blowing up for half-time and players were heading to the tunnel, TMO Sean Brickell stepped in.
“Don’t stop the game Adam because I’m checking for foul play. Late tackle,” he said.
Prompting Jones to shout: “Wait there now, wait there! Keep the players on the field. Two seconds. Just wait, the TMO is checking a late tackle.”
Fans had no idea what was happening, Ospreys players, beginning to realise what was going on, were remonstrating with the fourth official to let them down the tunnel.
Upon seeing the first replay, Jones said: “There’s nothing in that.”
Shanklin disagreed: “I think that’s a penalty.”
Brickell was seemingly in Shanklin’s camp, saying: “Adam, do you want to look at that again? Look at the time from when he kicks the ball until contact.”
Jones then rewatches the incident and changes his mind.
Meanwhile, Scarlets fans in the stand are apoplectic and demanding a card after seeing Costelow sat down for 10 minutes.
Explaining his decision to simply penalise Tipuric and not card him, Jones said: “We’ve reviewed the footage. We do have head contact and we do have foul play. The initial contact is on the chest and then it comes to
the head. It’s penalty only.”
Scarlets boss Dwayne Peel would not offer any thoughts on the incident after the match, but suffice to say Tipuric didn’t linger around the referee when it became apparent he would be staying on the field.
Costelow kicked the penalty but the Ospreys had a seven-point lead It didn’t last long.
Early in the second half, Ospreys flanker Morgan was penalised for what appeared to be a textbook turnover, leading to another three points for Costelow.
But the Ospreys hit back immediately when Sione Kalamafoni dropped the kick-off and a dominant scrum earned a penalty which Anscombe kicked.
Next in a rip-roaring encounter Keelan Giles was shown a yellow card for deliberately knocking on a pass that he was never realistically going to catch – and the Scarlets made the extra man count.
The home side took full advantage, stretching their visitors from one side of the field to the other before centre Johnny Williams beat away tackles from Nicky Smith and then Scott Baldwin to dive over. Costelow’s conversion levelled the scores.
With the crowd creating an electric atmosphere, the Scarlets took the lead with 15 minutes remaining.
New signing Vaea Fifita dislodged the ball with a thundering hit on Owen Watkin – which was checked by the officials but deemed legal – and Costelow made a searing break with the Ospreys defence in disarray and he dived under the sticks, converting his own effort.
The hosts spent much of the last 10 minutes hammering away in the Ospreys’ 22 but got nothing as Dewi Lake produced a crucial turnover inches from his own line.
But there was still time for more drama.
Penalties put the Ospreys into the Scarlets 22 and then Kalamafoni was shown a yellow card for a deliberate knock-on.
The Ospreys crossed out wide through replacement Rhys Davies and up stepped summer signing Walsh to nail the conversion with the last kick of the game.