CONNACHT 36
SCARLETS 14
IT WAS FAR from perfect but then again it rarely is on nights like this, when the rain falls and the wind blows in from the Atlantic.
But who cares? Certainly none of the 4,100 fans here did. They’ve seen Connacht self-destruct for so much of the season that they needed a pick-me-up. And Mack Hansen gave them that.
The Connacht winger was the best player on the pitch by a country mile – his two tries only telling half the story because when this game was in the balance, he was the one who went searching for the ball to try and make things happen.
And he did. That second try, scored near the end, was sensational – a score out of nothing. In fact it was like a soccer build-up, Jack Carty providing a through ball, Hansen outpacing the covering defence, kicking ahead again with a tidy touch before he eventually remembered it was rugby he was playing by diving on the loose ball.
Yet even his earlier try was well taken, even if he did receive the ball near the line – Carty again the provider – because there is a skill in taking up the right positions at the right time. Hansen has it. Many don’t. Connacht are lucky to have him.
Luck is something they need for this is a team struggling for confidence after a nightmare start saw them forced to play all four of last season’s URC semi-finalists in their opening five games. All four matches were lost by the way.
This wasn’t – not just because Connacht showed resolve when they had to – not just because Hansen was on fire but also because when you move outside the top five sides in this league, you come across a lot of average ones.
Scarlets are that. You never really know what Connacht are because when they click they can be brilliant. Too often they fail to show up, though. Consistency is their weakness.
Tonight they got it right – eventually.
For a while it was a struggle, Jack Carty missing four kicks at goal before David Hawkshaw took the tee off him. Other familiar failings – poor handling in the opposition 22 – also reappeared.
But other improvements were noticeable. They got a try (Jack Aungier scoring) that stemmed from their scrum which has been much better this season than last. A penalty try came off a maul, again an area they have developed quite nicely.
Add in their intent, the pace they played with, the additional energy that Niall Murray and Cian Prendergast give them, and you can see why they are likely to pick up points as the season goes on. Four of their remaining 12 games can be viewed as difficult, the rest as winnable.
As for Scarlets, well, where do you want to start? They are a shadow of the brilliant team Wayne Pivac built in the middle of the last decade.
The only thing that kept them in this game was Carty’s missed kicks – nine points being left behind there – and a dropped catch near the line by Byron Ralston in the first half, another seven points disappearing with that mistake.
Otherwise they showed a disappointing level of fight, conceding a key score – Jack Aungier’s – when they had a man advantage, Paul Boyle spending 10 minutes in the bin just after half-time.
We haven’t even mentioned their self-destructive errors yet, the impressive Murray blocking down Kieran Hardy’s attempted clearance on 26 seconds which led to a Murray try; their high penalty count, the edge missing in attack, save for Steff Evans’ fine score early on.
By the time Hansen got across midway through the first half to make it 16-11 you felt this would be Connacht’s night. Three points was all Scarlets could manage after the break. Connacht were just better – much better. They’re up and running so. It has taken six games but finally things are looking a bit more positive for Andy Friend’s side.
Connacht scorers
Tries: Murray, Hansen 2, Aungier, penalty try
Conversions: Carty (0/3) Hawkshaw (0/1)
Penalties: Carty (2/3) Hawkshaw (1/1)
Scarlets scorers
Tries: Evans
Conversions: Costellow (0/1)
Penalties: Costellow (2/2) Patchell (1/2)
Connacht: Tiernan O’Halloran (rep: Alex Wootton ’69), John Porch, Byron Ralston (rep: Cathal Forde ’65), David Hawkshaw, Mack Hansen, Jack Carty (CAPT), Kieran Marmion (rep: Colm Reilly ’55), Denis Buckley (Jordan Duggan ’65), Dave Heffernan (rep: Dylan Tierney-Martin ’55), Finlay Bealham (rep: Jack Aungier 52) , Niall Murray, Leva Fifita (rep: Oisin Dowling ’52), Cian Prendergast, Conor Oliver, Paul Boyle (48-58, yellow card – rep: Butler ’58)
Scarlets: Johnny McNicholl, Corey Baldwin, Steff Evans, Jonathan Davies (CAPT), Ryan Conbeer, Sam Costelow (rep: Rhys Patchell ’52), Kieran Hardy (rep: Dane Blacker ’50), Steff Thomas (rep: Kemsley Mathias ’65), Ken Owens (rep: Ryan Elias ’52), Harri O’Connor (rep: WillGriff John ’65), Jac Price (rep: Morgan Jones ’55), Tom Price, Josh Macleod, Dan Thomas (rep: ), Sione Kalamafoni
Replacements: Iwan Shenton Eddie James
Referee: Marius van der Westhuizen (SARU)