By Simon Thomas
Scarlets skipper Josh Macleod has paid tribute to his team of “warriors” and to the support from the travelling fans after a nerve-jangling 25-19 victory over Cardiff at a sold-out Arms Park.
Flanker Macleod had to watch on from the sin bin as the visitors were left with just 13 men for eight minutes in the closing stages of the United Rugby Championship derby after both he and wing Tom Rogers were yellow carded in quick succession.
But they dug deep and held on to claim their first win of the season in front of a capacity 12,125 crowd, gaining sweet revenge for the home defeat to Cardiff a fortnight ago.
“It was pretty stressful on the bench. I will be honest, I was nervous,” said Macleod.
“But the 13 men who were on the pitch showed plenty of resolve and resilience. Cardiff kept bashing at the door and we kept shutting it. It was some effort from the team. We had 13 warriors out there.”
The five biggest attendances in the URC so far this season:
80,468 – Leinster v Munster
18,397 – Leinster v Dragons
15,705 – Munster v Connacht
12,125 – Cardiff v Scarlets
11,533 – Ulster v Glasgow— Simon Thomas Rugby (@simonrug) October 13, 2024
Macleod added: “I’d also like to say thank you very much to our fans.
“We always have an amazing travelling support coming up here. That doesn’t go unnoticed. In the last 10-15 minutes, they didn’t go away, they kept backing us and that really helped.
“There was 12,000 out there, it was a special day.”
The win was all the sweeter for the Scarlets as they had been denied at the death by both Benetton and Connacht.
“We have had a couple of victories snatched pretty cruelly from us at the end of the games,” said Macleod.
“This time the tide turned and hopefully that momentum can carry us forward now.”
Buddugoliaeth dda dros Gaerdydd ym Mharc yr Arfau @scarlets_rugby #CARvSCA #scarlets #westisbest #cardiff #URC #rygbi pic.twitter.com/uoY8EZKdP8
— Richard Salisbury 🏴🇹🇷 (@richwxm82) October 13, 2024
Adding his thoughts, Scarlets coach Dwayne Peel said: “From a character perspective, I am really pleased.
“Defending with 13 men is pretty savage and the way we managed that period was excellent. I was immensely proud of that effort.
“We have had three games now where it has gone down to the wire in the last play. We have let leads slip, but we managed to stick in there this time and it was nice to get the win.
“It’s important to mention the travelling support. That really spurred us on at the end. It matters in the final few minutes when you are fighting for the game.”
TMO come in for something he’s not allowed to do for the Ioan Lloyd ball going out/staying in incident. Yet this is fine🤣🤣
If this was the other way round the Scarlet fans would be going mental. pic.twitter.com/Q7CHoPvnYD
— Everything Cardiff Rugby & Football (@CardiffRFCfan) October 13, 2024
Giving his verdict on the contest, Cardiff coach Matt Sherratt said: “It was about who took their chances and who didn’t. The ten minutes when they were down to 13 men is where we could have scored again.
“We had a bit of sustained pressure, but just couldn’t get over the line. The game kind of petered away from us.
“Obviously it stings and it hurts. That hurt has got to look like positive action. We can’t feel sorry for ourselves.”
It was three tries apiece in a fluctuating encounter, with Cardiff wing Harri Millard and Scarlets scrum-half Gareth Davies both crossing twice.
Having also claimed a brace against Connacht last week, the prolific Davies is now up to 54 league tries, drawing him level with regional team-mate Steff Evans for the most by a Welshman.
Only Tommy Bowe (67), Craig Gilroy (59), Tim Visser (58), and former Scarlets winger DTH Van der Merwe (58) lie above them on the all-time list.
SOSBAN FACH YM MHARC YR ARFAU 🎶🥁
Sorry for the delay, admin had a couple of technical issues yesterday… but it’s worth the wait!#YmaOHyd pic.twitter.com/8DXf4uvDIO
— Scarlets Rugby (@scarlets_rugby) October 13, 2024