Scarlets 7 – 32 Leinster
Defending European champions Leinster’s first half blitz destroyed any hopes the Scarlets had of maintaining their unbeaten streak in Pool 6 at Parc y Scarlets.
The Scarlets were one of only four sides defending an unblemished record in this season’s Heineken Cup but a subdued first half by the home side put Leinster in the driving seat at the break.
The Scarlets were left shell-shocked at halftime with the current champions leading 22-0 and good value for their lead.
Leinster were simply irresistible in the opening half, cutting the Scarlets defence to shreds almost at will. The Irish side displayed superior speed of thought and speed of hands as forwards and backs combined to leave the home side clutching at thin air.
The masterclass began in the fourth minute when Irish winger Shane Horgan waltzed past opposite number Andrew Fenby, Ken Owens and Daniel Evans en route to the try-line.
The Scarlets failed to learn their lesson as Leinster utilised the space out wide and exploited the home side’s poor defence to cut holes at will.
A clearly dominant Leinster refused to take the foot off the throat as Jamie Heaslip burst from a scrum to set up the next try. The ball was flung wide where winger Ica Nacewa got outside Lee Williams who then passed inside to the supporting Gordon D’Arcy who strolled over.
The one way traffic continued when deputy fly half Sean Berne finished off another breathtaking move in the 30th minute to leave the European champions within sniffing distance of claiming a bonus point for scoring four tries.
Jonathan Davies gave the Scarlets some hope four minutes after the break after he powered through Lions centres D’Arcy and Brian O’Driscoll to scramble over near the posts. With Stephen Jones adding the conversion, Leinster’s lead had been cut to 22-7.
Leinster then lost lock Nathan Hines for 10 minutes as the Scarlets tore into Leinster and in a full blooded affair Scarlets centre Sean Lamont then joined his fellow Scot on the sidelines when he was yellow carded for a shoulder charge on Nacewa. Berne added insult to injury by banging over the resultant penalty to put Leinster 25-7 ahead.
Leinster eventually got their bonus point with a blistering attack down the touchline with Berne prominent again. He sold a dummy to send Heaslip clear who slipped the ball inside to his back row partner Sean O’Brien who dived over in Jones’s tackle.
With London Irish demolishing Brive 36-3, the Scarlets now find themselves third on the points table and now face a daunting trip to Dublin next weekend where a defeat would be a huge blow to their channces of making it to the knockout stages.
