Wayne Pivac Admits Winless Scarlets Need Others To Stumble

Scarlets coach Wayne Pivac has admitted his team already need favours elsewhere if they are to make any impact in this season’s European Champions Cup.

The Guinness Pro12 title holders were given a lesson in control and wet weather proficiency by Bath on Friday night as the English club won 18-13 at Parc Y Scarlets.

It means the Scarlets have now lost both their opening two matches, normally the kiss of death for any team hoping to make it through to the quarter-finals.

Scarlets old boy Rhys Priestland did the damage with six penalties and Pivac conceded: “It probably leaves us needing to win the remainder of our games as well as something going our way.

“We’re certainly not in the position we wanted to be in. Home games are a must in this competition, now we’ve got to pick up a big win away and reverse that result against Bath next time round. The next game up has to be four or five points.

“Of course it’s not over, anything can happen. We expected to go out there and play better than we did and get a result. We didn’t, but that can happen.

“We’ve just got to make sure that we take control of what we can control and that’s the teams that are put in front of us. The next one is Benetton at home so we look forward to that.”

Priestland kicked Bath to a victory in a rain-soaked at Llanelli. In atrocious conditions, the Bath fly-half hit six penalties in defiance of the stormy conditions and in doing so, denied Scarlets the home win that would have opened the pool up after losing bonus points defeat in Toulon last week.

But Priestland epitomised Bath’s efficiency on a night when the visitors tactically outsmarted the pre-match favourites with a composed performance built on territory.

The contest only featured one try by Steff Evans – a first-half score that will almost certainly feature in any try of the season shortlist.

But while that effort was a thoroughly deserved reward for Scarlets’ adventure, it proved a night that paid a better return for a controlled approach.

Pivac added: “We’re disappointment, obviously. We knew how important that game was, but our first half let us down.

“I thought they used the ball very well in the conditions, built some pressure and took scoring opportunities from Priestland’s boot. We can’t argue, on the day they were probably the better side.”