Scarlets 36
Connacht 27
CONNACHT CAME MIGHTILY lose to causing the Guinness PRO14 upset of the season, but ultimately fell short going down 36-27 to defending champions Scarlets.
However, Kieran Keane’s side left West Wales with credit in the bank as they scored four tries through Jack Carty, Cian Kelleher and Tiernan O’Halloran’s brace.
Despite their fourth defeat of the season, this was Connacht’s best performance of the campaign to date, with the Irish province rediscovering some of the attacking verve that made them champions in 2016. But Scarlets just had too much for them, scoring five tries through Johnny McNicholl, Steffan Evans, Rhys Patchell, Leigh Halfpenny and Leinster native Tadhg Beirne.
The Scarlets started the stronger of the two sides with winger McNicholl touching down under the posts after a powerful break by centre Jonathan Davies.
Just when it looked like the Scarlets were going to have it all their own way, Bundee Aki forced his opposite number Scott Williams to throw a loose pass in his own 22 which was gathered by out-half Carty who scored Connacht’s first try.
The home side hit straight back when electric winger Evans beat three Connacht defenders with his footwork to scorch over from 40 metres.
Evans was at the forefront of the Welsh region’s third try with a sumptuous offload for out-half Patchell to cross.
But Keane’s side refused to lie down, hitting back with two cracking tries of their own to briefly take the lead. The visitors’ second was scored by O’Halloran and his wing partner Kelleher then scored in the opposite corner.
Still the scoring wouldn’t end as Halfpenny showed his attacking prowess, connecting well with Davies and Evans to put the Scarlets ahead at half time.
In what was an enthralling second 40, Connacht pushed Scarlets to the wire and came close to levelling the scores with four minutes to go after No 8 Eoin McKeon set up O’Halloran.
Carty’s conversion would have tied the scores, but his kick went wide and that was as good as it got for the visitors as Beirne powered over from short range to secure a bonus point victory for the champions.
Scorers
Scarlets:
Tries: McNicholl 8, Evans 18, Patchell 25, Halfpenny 39, Beirne 78
Convs: Halfpenny 9,27,40, 80
Pens: Halfpenny 58
Connacht:
Tries: Carty 10, O’Halloran 31, 74, Kelleher 39,
Convs: Carty 11, 31
Pens: Carty 23
Scarlets: Halfpenny; McNicholl (Prydie 70), J Davies, Williams, S Evans; Patchell (Asquith 64), A Davies (J Evans 55); R Evans (D Evans 21), Owens (capt) (Phillips 64), Kruger (Gardiner 72), Ball, Bulbring (Rawlins 53), Shingler, Boyde (Beirne 41), Macleod
Connacht: Leader (Griffin 53); Kelleher, Aki, Farrell, O’Halloran; Carty, Blade (Marmion 53); Buckley (Coulson 66), McCartney (capt) (Delahunt 71), Carey (Bealham 59), Dillane (Thornbury 59), Roux, Heenan (Masterson 80), Butler, McKeon
Replacement not used: Crosbie
Referee: Nigel Owens (WRU)
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Why is stamp in inverted commas?
Disgraceful conduct by O’ Driscoll. A fitting end to an underwhelming career.
If your going to troll pls be either:
Funny
Clever
Original
And not just a tool, there’s a good lad.
And there goes someone with a chronic attention seeking disorder, penny for the pity?? Anyone
Not trolling, sweetheart.
For someone who is heralded as one of the best players ever on the international stage, all he has to show for it is one Grand Slam. If he concentrated more on his rugby & less on being the poor mans David Beckham, he might be worthy of the adulation he gets from you sheep.
Still, at least he has the “BOD” brand to concentrate on now. LOL.
Jamie, agreed on BOD being an attention seeker. He was lucky not to get a straight red for that today.
You are actually aware that you need 15 players on a rugby team, it’s not an individual sport.
George Best was crap too I suppose. Never even played in a World Cup !
Exactly, 15 players on a team until one of them gets sin-binned for violent conduct. If BOD kept his head & tried to win the game for his country we wouldn’t even be having this discussion.
Also, you’re surely not saying that it’s been BOD & 14 no-hopers for the past decade? You can extend my earlier comment about an underwhelming career to the rest of the so-called “golden generation”.
BTW, George Best retired at 27 & was seen as a wasted talent. Not the best comparison to make.
Great lad
3 Heineken Cups in 4 years. Hardly underwhelming figures. The man is class and if our country sees another like him in the short years ahead we’ll be extremely lucky.
Underwhelming on the INTERNATIONAL stage Nicky. He left us down today, plain & simple.
We shouldn’t have to rely on a late Scotland try to save us from the wooden spoon.
Don’t where you’re getting ‘Nicky’ from.
Regardless, your comment said ‘underwhelming career’ and I was responding directly to that.
Yes he made a mistake today but that is not the issue I was commenting on.
That should read ‘don’t know where’
I’m genuinely struggling to comprehend how you could possibly call the career one of the greatest players of the professional era as ‘underwhelming’. He’s renowned as being one of the greatest because his career has been the total opposite of that
Jaysus Nikki,
It was obvious I was talking about his international career. It’s not 100% certain he’s going to retire from Leinster yet.
So the issue you were commenting on is the one you’ve decided you want to talk about, not the one I was raising. That’s not the way things work, you should try & stay on topic. :-)
Ciaran,
Whats he got to show for his career in the green shirt? One grand slam.
Underwhelming return for “one of the greatest players of the professional era.”
Give it a rest eh? You said ‘career’. It’s not 100% he’s retired from anywhere!!!
Nikki? If you want personal terms stop hiding behind a pseudo name and be open about who you are. Like I do.
Imagine a footballer did that, absolutely disgraceful, nothing will be said about it though because its a sainted rugby player and we all know they’re paragons of virtue and sportsmanship, not like those horrible football louts
Should have been a straight Red – the intend was there !
10 posts on ODriscolls stamp – wonder how many if it was another player ???