Scarlets take bonus against Dragons

Editor

James Davies and Phil John scored two tries each as the Scarlets beat the Dragons 25-15 in Friday's PRO12 clash at Parc y Scarlets.

It was a very nervy start from both sides at the Parc y Scarlets with kicking being a big part of the game early on.

However, it was the home side that opened the scoring. Davies touched down but, before it was awarded, referee Ben Whitehouse checked with the TMO for a forward pass. He saw nothing wrong and the try was given.

The score gave the Scarlets a boost and they added another soon after. John managed to get the ball over the line in the corner to put the hosts 12-0 ahead after Aled Thomas missed the resulting conversion.

The second try prompted a response from Newport. Jason Tovey managed to cross the whitewash with five minutes left after scoring a penalty earlier in the contest. Tovey failed to add the extra two points as the Scarlets went in at half-time four points to the good at 12-8.

The beginning of the second half was much like the first with the ball changing possession frequently, but the Scarlets were awarded a penalty in front of the posts seven minutes into the second half. Thomas eased the ball between the uprights to leave Newport needing a converted try to level the scores.

However, that became a difficult task as Adam Hughes was shown a yellow card just short of the hour mark and the Scarlets took advantage straight away with a driving maul going over the line. John was the player to touch the ball down as he grabbed his second of the evening.

Davies grabbed another try before Newport were restored to their full complement, but Thomas couldn't add the conversions.

Sarel Pretorius made an instant impact coming on for the Dragons and scoring to give Newport a glimmer of hope. Tovey converted to set up a tense end to the game.

The full-back then had a chance to add another three points and put the Dragons within seven, but his kick missed and the Scarlets managed to hold on for a victory.

 

The scorers:

For Scarlets:
Tries: Davies 2, John 2
Con: Thomas
Pen: Thomas

For Dragons:
Tries: Tovey, Pretorius
Con: Tovey
Pen: Tovey
Yellow Card: Hughes

Scarlets: 15 Aled Thomas, 14 Tom Williams, 13 Regan King, 12 Hadleigh Parkes, 11 Harry Robinson, 10 Steven Shingler, 9 Rhodri Williams, 8 John Barclay, 7 James Davies, 6 Aaron Shingler, 5 Lewis Rawlins, 4 Jake Ball, 3 Peter Edwards, 2 Ken Owens (c), 1 Phil John.
Replacements: 16 Emyr Phillips, 17 Dylan Evans, 18 Will Taylor, 19 George Earle, 20 Jack Condy, 21 Aled Davies, 22 Dan Jones, 23 Jacob Cowley.

Dragons: 15 Jason Tovey, 14 Ashton Hewitt, 13 Adam Hughes, 12 Adam Warren, 11 Nick Scott, 10 Dorian Jones, 9 Charlie Davies, 8 Taulupe Faletau, 7 Nic Cudd, 6 Ed Jackson, 5 Rynard Landman (c), 4 Matthew Screech, 3 Brok Harris, 2 Elliot Dee, 1 Boris Stankovich.
Replacements: 16 Rhys Buckley, 17 Phil Price, 18 Shaun Knight, 19 Cory Hill, 20 Ollie Griffiths, 21 Sarel Pretorius, 22 Geraint Rhys Jones, 23 Carl Meyer.

Venue: Parc y Scarlets
Referee: Ben Whitehouse (Wales)
Assistant Referees: Neil Hennessy (Wales), Dan Jones (Wales)
TMO: Tim Hayes (Wales)