Leicester Tigers 46 – 10 Scarlets
Three second half tries within a 10 minutes blitz proved the beginning of the end for any Scarlets hopes of pulling off a victory against Leicester Tigers at Welford Road.
The Tigers were pushed hard at the break, leading just 13-10 in this Pool Five clash of the Heineken Cup, but the Welsh region were blown apart in the second half as the home side scorched over for five unanswered tries.
Impressive scrum half Ben Youngs, back rowers Thomas Waldrom and Tom Croft went over within 10 minutes of the resumption, with further tries from flanker Croft and centre Matty Smith completing the rout.
The Scarlets entered the fray in confident mood after their pulsating victory over Perpignan last weekend but once the Tigers mean machine got going, the Welsh side were completely outplayed by a bullish pack which smothered the life out of their counterparts.
The Scarlets scrum was rudderless against the Tigers while their lineout proved a major area of concern. The Tigers seemed to be able to pick off the Scarlets line outs at will to pile the pressure on Nigel Davies’s side.
It all began so brightly for the Scarlets, whose try in the 15th minute will be a candidate for try of the season. Kiwi centre Regan King launched a counter-attack from the Scarlets’ 22 that saw Sean Lamont race down the touchline. The flying Scot fended off one would-be tackler before feeding Josh Turnbull, who found King for the centre to off-load the scoring pass to Morgan Stoddart for a breathtaking try by, converted by Stephen Jones.
But the home pack hit back immediately with powerhouse prop Castrogiovanni crashing over, Toby Flood’s conversion levelled the scores.
Somehow the Scarlets defense managed to keep the Tigers at bay but the huge defensive effort was already beginning to take its toll.
After the resumption there was only one team in it as the Tigers cut loose to leave the Scarlets in complete disarray as the Welsh side were left chasing shadows.
