Ospreys overcome Scarlets in tense Welsh derby after scoreless first half

The power of the Ospreys’ pack proved too much for the Scarlets in the second period after a dire first half had seen the teams go in level at 0-0.

In a tight encounter, neither side were able to break the deadlock in the opening 40 minutes, but it was the visitors who eventually wrestled control of the match.

Wales scrum-half Gareth Davies got the ball rolling as the Scarlets moved in front, but it was actually the Ospreys who reacted better to that score.

A converted Reuben Morgan-Williams try took the Swansea-based outfit ahead before a pair of Owen Williams penalties helped them into a 13-5 advantage.

Sam Parry’s try edged them closer to the victory and, although two Ioan Lloyd three-pointers gave the Scarlets hope, Jack Walsh touched down late on to seal a 25-11 win in the URC and deny the Llanelli team a losing bonus-point.

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Unlike the other Welsh regional derby earlier in the day at the Arms Park, where there were 12 tries in Cardiff’s game against the Dragons, tries and points were at a premium in a good old fashioned arm-wrestle. It was 0-0 at the break with everything to play for in the second half.

That’s when the Ospreys pack turned on the power and the visitors conjured up three tries to take the win. The home side’s cause wasn’t helped by Wales hopeful Lloyd missing with three penalty attempts in the opening 40 minutes.

The deadlock was eventually broken two minutes into the second half when scrum-half Davies snapped up a loose ball just inside his own half as the Ospreys tried to move the ball wide and he raced all the way to the line to score.

Once again, Lloyd missed with his wide-angled conversion, but at least the home side, who had been beaten by the Georgian side Black Lion 23-9 in their last outing, were ahead.

The Ospreys had been on the back foot for much of the first half, but their tigerish defence kept them in the contest and after the break they were able to build pressure of their own.

They eventually hit the front in the 50th minute when scrum-half Morgan-Williams dived over after his forwards had laid siege to the Scarlets try line.

Owen Williams added the extras and then landed a penalty to make it 10-5. The Wales outside half then dropped into the pocket to land a crucial drop-goal six minutes later to push his side more than a single score ahead.

It was still a very tight contest and the Ospreys put themselves under pressure when Owen Watkin picked up a yellow card in the 70th minute as Craig Evans ran out of patience with the number of offences from the visitors. This time Lloyd hit the target to cut the gap to five points.

There was all to play for in the final 10 minutes, but the Scarlets couldn’t make their extra man work for them. Instead, they lost returning skipper Josh Macleod to the sin-bin in the 73rd minute for a no arms tackle.

That allowed the Ospreys to pop the ball into the corner and work replacement hooker Parry over for their second try. Owen Williams couldn’t convert, and only a wonder tackle by Luke Morgan stopped Ben Williams from scoring in the corner.

Lloyd kicked a second penalty to make it 18-11 with the clock showing 80 minutes. That looked as though it had earned the Scarlets a losing bonus-point but as they tried to break out of their 22 in the last play of the game, a pass from Johnny Williams to Tom Rogers hit the deck.

Quick as a flash, Walsh nipped in to scoop up the loose ball and race 22 metres to the line. Owen Williams converted to complete the victory.

Scarlets: 15 Tom Rogers, 14 Ioan Nicholas, 13 Joe Roberts, 12 Johnny Williams, 11 Ryan Conbeer, 10 Ioan Lloyd, 9 Gareth Davies, 8 Josh Macleod (c), 7 Teddy Leatherbarrow, 6 Sam Lousi, 5 Jac Price, 4 Alex Craig, 3 Sam Wainwright, 2 Ryan Elias, 1 Kemsley Mathias
Replacements: 16 Shaun Evans, 17 Wyn Jones, 18 Joe Jones, 19 Morgan Jones, 20 Ben Williams, 21 Kieran Hardy, 22 Jonathan Davies, 23 Charlie Titcombe

Ospreys: 15 Jack Walsh, 14 Mat Protheroe, 13 George North, 12 Owen Watkin, 11 Keelan Giles, 10 Owen Williams, 9 Reuben Morgan-Williams, 8 Morgan Morse, 7 Harri Deaves, 6 Rhys Davies, 5 Adam Beard (c), 4 James Fender, 3 Tom Botha, 2 Dewi Lake, 1 Gareth Thomas
Replacements: 16 Sam Parry, 17 Garyn Phillips, 18 Ben Warren, 19 Lewis Jones, 20 Tristan Davies, 21 Luke Davies, 22 Dan Edwards, 23 Luke Morgan

Referee: Craig Evans (Wales)
Assistant Referees: Adam Jones (Wales), Gwyn Morris (Wales)
TMO: Jon Mason (Wales)

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