Leinster suffered a second defeat in the United Rugby Championship at sun-splashed Parc y Scarlets on Saturday when the Scarlets beat them by 35-22 and shocked the rugby community.
An early break by Will Connors was compromised by a wayward offload and Sam Costelow’s kick out on the full was a sign of the adrenaline pulsing through Scarlets.
A penalty allowed Costelow to send the ball down the line for a Scarlets lineout as they pressed to make home advantage count. Gareth Davies showed his desire to snipe through traffic early on.
Costelow missed an early chance to put Scarlets into the lead but the home side did not have to wait long for their first score. A short ball from tighthead prop Henry Thomas released Taine Plumtree and Davies was on his inside shoulder to score the opening try, converted by Costelow in the 10th minute.
Number eight Plumtree’s poach at the breakdown delivered a penalty for Costelow to secure a lineout just outside the 22 and another penalty allowed the Scarlets out-half to make it a 10-point lead in the 13th minute.
Leinster almost created a response only for Liam Turner to knock on, just before Ciarán Frawley sent Andrew Osborne away. An early injury to Deeny led to the introduction of Academy forward Diarmuid Mangan.
Blair Murray’s attempted clearance went out on the full, allowing Leinster an attacking lineout in a dangerous position. Andrew Osborne was inches away from connecting with Frawley to send him away, but an early tackle from Murray prevented the full-back from getting on to the ball. Ross Byrne kicked the resulting penalty to make it 10-3 in the 18th minute.
The nimble work of front rowers Alec Hepburn and Thomas on the edge was rewarded when Costelow kicked in behind for Tom Rogers to collect a try to extend the Scarlets’ advantage to 15-3 in the 22nd minute.
But Leinster came back immediately as Mangan blocked down a clearance kick, allowing Jamie Osborne to seize on the loose ball and score his side’s first try of the day. Byrne added the extras in the 24th minute to close the gap to 15-10.
Agile Alex Soroka recovered a turnover. Just when Leinster threatened to come away through Jamie Osborne’s slick pass to Liam Turner, Plumtree intercepted Byrne to run in a try from the halfway line, converted by Costelow to put the hosts up 22-10 in the 31st minute.
Turner shot through the middle from Fintan Gunne’s excellent play to hunt a score before the half. Ellis Mee tracked down the centre five metres out, but Leinster recycle,d and Mangan’s leg drive did the rest to cross the line in the 36th minute for his first Leinster try.
A tremendous tackle by Jamie Osborne on Vaea Fifita paved the way for Soroka to grab another turnover.
When Scarlets beat the rush defence, Kelleher was on the premises to complete a turnover to keep the score at 22-15 going into the break.
The home side came bursting out of the blocks in the second half, and Murray’s footwork created the break before he sent Joe Roberts through for his side’s fourth try, converted by Costelow in the 43rd minute.
Leinster’s pressure at the restart unsettled Scarlets. Three quick penalties put the visitors on the five-metre line. The hard carrying of Jamie Osborne and Mangan provided the momentum for clever against-the-grain lines of running to end, with number eight Culhane driving to the line to score. Byrne converted once more to make it 29-22.
Ioan Lloyd kept the scoreboard ticking over for Scarlets as he slotted a penalty in the 55th minute to extend their lead.
The game started to lose its shape a bit. Prop Boyle snatched a turnover. Alex Craig was penalised for a neck roll on Soroka. Plumtree fielded Gunne’s Garryowen.
Byrne was forced to give up a penalty on his own line in order to prevent another Scarlets try as he chased down a kick in behind.
The tap and go by Marnus van der Merwe was countered by Baird’s brilliance at the breakdown as the second row earned a penalty to allow Leinster to clear their lines.
Boyle’s impact since coming on was apparent. O’Brien shot down the tramline. McCarthy almost completed a one-two with Mangan.
Two scrum penalties saw Leinster march down the field to the five-metre line, where Soroka crossed the line to ground the ball but his effort was called back as he was judged to have crawled on his way to the tryline.
Suddenly, Leinster applied rhythm to their continuity as Charlie Tector, O’Brien, Turner and Boyle all moved beyond the gain line.
Jamie Osborne was unable to convert a half-chance. Ellis Mee was in a similar position at the other end. Jimmy O’Brien tap-tackled Macs Page.
Ruben Moloney ducked inside defenders for his first touch on his debut. Leinster just couldn’t apply the finishing touches.
Lloyd’s last-minute kick put the game to bed. Baird grabbed the restart to earn one last chance at two losing bonus points but Leinster could not convert.
Scorers:
Scarlets: Tries: Gareth Davies, Tom Rogers, Taine Plumtree, Joe Roberts. Conversions: Sam Costelow (3). Penalties: Sam Costelow, Ioan Lloyd (2)
Leinster Rugby: Tries: Andrew Osborne, Diarmuid Mangan, James Culhane. Conversions: Ross Byrne (2). Penalties: Ross Byrne.
Teams
Scarlets: 15 Blair Murray, 14 Tom Rogers, 13 Joe Roberts, 12 Johnny Williams, 11 Ellis Mee, 10 Sam Costelow, 9 Gareth Davies, 8 Taine Plumtree, 7 Josh Macleod (c), 6 Vaea Fifita, 5 Sam Lousi, 4 Alex Craig, 3 Henry Thomas, 2 Ryan Elias, 1 Alec Hepburn. Replacements: 16 Marnus van der Merwe, 17 Louie Trevett, 18 Sam Wainwright, 19 Jac Price, 20 Jarrod Taylor, 21 Archie Hughes, 22 Ioan Lloyd, 23 Macs Page.
Leinster Rugby: 15 Ciarán Frawley, 14 Andrew Osborne, 13 Liam Turner, 12 Jamie Osborne, 11 Jimmy O’Brien, 10 Ross Byrne, 9 Fintan Gunne, 8 James Culhane, 7 Will Connors, 6 Alex Soroka, 5 Brian Deeny, 4 Ryan Baird, 3 Thomas Clarkson, 2 Rónan Kelleher (c), 1 Cian Healy. Replacements: 16 Gus McCarthy, 17 Jack Boyle, 18 Rabah Slimani, 19 Diarmuid Mangan, 20 Scott Penny, 21 Cormac Foley, 22 Charlie Tector, 23 Ruben Moloney.