And so, we reach what definitely will be the final home fixture of this season as the Scarlets face the Toyota Cheetahs in the quarter final of the competition. With Munster securing a tight win over Edinburgh to face Leinster in the other Semi Final, the victors of this fixture will travel to Scotland to face Glasgow on Friday, May 18th, 2018.
Calon Lan and Hymns and Arias filled the air as the Scarlets demonstrated their intent from the start as they tested the Cheetah’s defence with wave after wave of attack from the Scarlets. There was an early opportunity for the home team as Hadleigh Parkes broke through the defence but was penalised for not releasing the ball.
It took just over five minutes for the Scarlets to notch up their first try, with Rhys Patchell finding Steff Evans who crossed in the corner. Leigh Halfpenny added the extras with a superb kick from the touchline to give the Scarlets an early 7 points to 0 lead.
A huge effort from the Scarlets forwards totally destroyed the Cheetahs’ scrum, offering Leigh Halfpenny the opportunity to further extend the lead with a long-range effort right in front of the posts, but despite having the distance, the ball hit the posts.
He was offered a second bite of the cherry a matter of minutes later, in a much easier position after Tadhg Beirne won a penalty at the ruck. He made no mistake with that effort to put the Scarlets ahead by 10 points to 0.
The Scarlets’ half back partnership of Gareth Davies and Rhys Patchell combined well for try number two, before off-loading to Hadleigh Parkes who found Leigh Halfpenny who strolled over, dotting down under the posts. He added the simple conversion to extend the Scarlets’ lead to 17 points to 0.
Cheetahs finally got some points on the board after 22 minutes played with Outside Half Johan Goosen successful with his attempt to narrow the lead slightly to 17 points to 3.
However, the Scarlets were soon back in attacking mode, twice opting to kick for the corner as they aimed for try number three. Twice they crossed the line, but the ball was held up and then unusually the wrong option from Hadleigh Parkes saw him put in a chip kick that only found future Scarlet Clayton Blommetijes.
Despite this missed opportunity, the Scarlets continued pressing but the Cheetahs defence managed to hold firm as Tom Prydie was held up, however, another steal at the line-out offered the Scarlets a chance to counter-attack.
With Leigh Halfpenny being substituted by Dan Jones, the Scarlets were offered another long-range penalty option. Rhys Patchell took over the kicking duties but was unfortunately off-target with his attempt.
Try number three can only be described as individual brilliance from Steff Evans, who side-stepped a few Cheetahs on his way to the line, before kicking behind the visitor’s defence to touch down for a fine solo effort. Patchell added the extras as the Scarlets extended their lead to 24 points to 3, with half time approaching.
With the clock in the red, the Scarlets continued applying the pressure, however they lost the ball, offering Blommetijies the opportunity to demonstrate his pace, but Scott Williams had other ideas and the half ended with the Scarlets leading by 24 points to 3.
The second half started positively for the Scarlets once more, making this quite a spectacle of attacking rugby as Tom Prydie, making a welcome return from injury, strolled over for try number four. Patchell again added the extras to further extend the hosts’ lead to 31 points to 3.
Parc y Scarlets rose to its feet as an emotional John Barclay left the pitch for the final time as a Scarlets player, though, of course his season as a Scarlet is not over yet.
Within seconds of his departure, the Scarlets drove over from close range, with James Davies claiming the try. Patchell again added the extras to give the Scarlets a commanding 38 points to 3 lead.
Minutes later replacement Scrum Half, Jonathan Evans crossed as the Scarlets continued to dominate. Again, Patchell was successful with his conversion to put the hosts ahead by 43 points to 3.
Parc y Scarlets again rose to it’s feet, with a huge cheer for Tadhg Beirne as he left to be replaced by Aaron Shingler, before repeating the process as a very emotional Scott Williams left the pitch.
The Cheetahs finally managed to cross the whitewash for what appeared to be their first try, however the TMO coverage showed that Tom Prydie had been blocked earlier on in the move and the try was disallowed.
With five minutes of the game remaining, the Cheetahs were again on the attack, with future Scarlet Clayton Blommetjies crossing for a consolation try – 43 points to 8.
It was a controversial ending as Rhys Patchell was shown a yellow card for a try-saving tackle on Sibahle Maxwane, despite the clock being over the 80 minutes.
The Cheetahs were then offered another chance for a second consolation try, but the Scarlets defence held firm, despite Maxwane crossing the whitewash, but he lost the ball and was denied to give a final score of Scarlets 43 – 8.
The Scarlets now travel to Glasgow for the Semi Final on Friday, 18th May as the defending champions aim to keep their crown.
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