The Scarlets became only the second team this season to lower the colours of table-topping Leinster as they picked up the full five points against the Irish side to stay in the hunt for a BKT United Rugby Championship quarter-final play-off spot.
It was the first time since September 2018 that Dwayne Peel’s men had beaten Leinster.
Leo Cullen may have rested his front line team ahead of next weekend’s Investec Champions Cup semi-final, but the boys in blue still rocked up with 11 internationals in their matchday 23.
The 35-22 bonus-point win moved Scarlets up into seventh place and put them in good shape for their final two regular season games against the Lions and Sharks in South Africa.
“They were brave from the start of the game and we finished off some good moves with tries. It was a pressure game and we are delighted that our future is in our own hands going to South Africa,” said head coach Peel.
“We haven’t won as a region out there against the four teams now in the URC, so we need to make some history. We’ve got a bit of a break now and we’ll give our Welsh players some time off this week because they haven’t had any rest since the Six Nations.
“The side prepped well in the week, they were hungry for it and they showed great character. In the last two URC games we had to fight our way back after being down against the Ospreys and Dragons, but this time we led all the way.
“We said at the start of the season we wanted to be competitive and for the large part of the campaign we have been. Now we have everything to play for.”
The pumped-up home side led from start to finish and picked up the try bonus-point with their fourth score two minutes into the second half. Leinster never really recovered from an error and penalty strewn opening that saw the Scarlets race into a 10 point lead and plunder three first half tries.
Veteran scrum half Gareth Davies grabbed the first after a midfield bust by man of the match Taine Plumtree and then returning Wales outside half Sam Costelow cross kicked perfectly for Tom Rogers to grab the second.
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Plumtree then picked off a midfield pass to intercept on half way and race to the posts for the third. Costelow converted two of them and also kicked a penalty.
The Leinster response came from an early Ross Byrne penalty and then a try for Jamie Osborne that was made by a charge down by Diarmuid Mangan. Then, on the stoke of half-time, the best move of the match saw Fintan Gunne explode off the base of a scrum on half way and pave the way for Liam Turner to break clear into the Scarlets 22.
The centre was held just short, but Mangan was on hand to drive over. Having converted the Osborne try, Byrne was off target with his second attempt, but still the visitors were in touch at 22-15 at half-time.
The first score in the second half was always going to be important and it fell to the home side.
Wales full back Blair Murray made the break and his international teammate Joe Roberts rounded things off. Costelow added the extra sand then his replacement Ioan Lloyd rounded things off with two long range penalties.
Leinster added a third try through No 8 Jamie Culhane, which Byrne improved, but that was as good as it got for them as they left Parc y Scarlets with nothing.
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