Scarlets climbed back up to second in the GUINNESS PRO12 table but they had to withstand a second-half comeback from Zebre to claim a 20-12 win at the Parc y Scarlets. Early scores from Hadleigh Parkes and Aled Davies sent the Welsh region in at the break with a comfortable 17-0 lead. But as the conditions worsened so the Italians, who entered the clash with three wins from their last five in all competitions, came into the game and two Dries van Schalkwyk scores closed the gap. And with Maselino Paulino in the sin bin Wayne Pivac’s troops looked like they might throw it all away. However, replacement Steven Shingler slotted a late penalty for the hosts to guarantee them their seventh win in the first eight games of the league season. The Scarlets made eleven changes to the team that lost to Racing 92 last time out, including a late one as Gareth Owen replaced Tom Williams on the wing. And the much-changed outfit were on the front foot from the off and a clever kick from DTH van der Merwe gave them territory deep in the Zebre 22. And when the lineout was stolen it was Parkes who shrugged off a couple of weak tackles to stroll under the posts for the game’s first try, Aled Thomas added the extras and the Welsh side took an early 7-0 lead. The second try was not far away either, Parkes again heavily involved as the centre made the initial break before feeding his scrum-half Aled Davies and the No.9 raced clear – Thomas again adding the extra. A penalty in the 22nd minute was slotted by Thomas as well and the Scarlets were cruising with a 17-0 lead. In the second quarter the conditions began to worsen and that finally brought the Italians into the game. Indeed Wayne Pivac’s troops were defending their own line, virtually unbroken, from the half-hour mark until the half time whistle but they held on and went into the sheds with a 17-0 lead. After the break Zebre needed the first score and it was van Schalkwyk who got it, barging over at the back of the driving maul in the 49th minute, Canna missed with the extras however to leave it at 17-5. The visitors were definitely in the ascendancy now and only fantastic work from Rhodri Jones denied a second Zebre try, the prop holding up Marcello Violi over the line. But the same passage of play saw Paulino given a yellow card for coming in from the side and the Italians were lifted. They made immediate advantage of their numbers when van Schalkwyk picked up from the back of a close-range scrum, shrugged off Aled Davies and dived over for his second, Canna’s conversion makes it 17-12 just past the hour mark. But in the final quarter of an hour the Italians never really got in range to land the killer blow and Shingler – who missed a 66th minute penalty that would have done the job – made amends late on. Hands in the ruck from Zebre gave him a kick from nearly bang in front and the replacement slotted over for an unassailable 20-12 lead. To buy tickets for the GUINNESS PRO12 Grand Final click here. Also follow us on Facebook, join the conversation on Twitter, sign up to our YouTube channel for extensive match highlights and sign up for our newsletter for regular updates on the GUINNESS PRO12.
