Connacht started brightly at Stradey Park but the Scarlets, playing their final Magners League at their famous home ground, hammered Michael Bradley’s side to shreds by scoring seven tries as they moved to the top of the table.
The Scarlets maintained their early season winning streak as they hit Connacht with 45 unanswered points, with Deacon Manu (2), Jonathan Davies, Nathan Brew, Morgan Stoddart (2) and Mark Jones all helping themselves to tries.
Nigel Davies’ troops, who led 12-3 at half-time, really came alive in the second half, just as they did last Wednesday when they launched a stunning comeback to beat the Newport Gwent Dragons.
16-3 losers to the Ospreys last week, Connacht were hoping to get their campaign off the ground with their first victory at the famous Llanelli ground since October 2004.
Both Davies and his Connacht counterpart Michael Bradley made six changes to the sides they selected for their last games.
Bradley notably brought scrum half Kieran Campbell in for his first competitive start for the province, while hooker Adrian Flavin also came in for his first start of the season.
The hosts welcomed back team captain Simon Easterby and scrum half Martin Roberts, after they both impressed as replacements at Rodney Parade.
In ideal conditions, Ireland ‘A’ international Ian Keatley kicked the visitors into a first-minute lead after the Scarlets had gone off their feet at the game’s first ruck.
But the home outfit soon took over and by the end of the first quarter they were 12-3 in front.
Stephen Jones got them on the hoof with a couple of penalties to touch. The Scarlets’ game plan was all too obvious when they shunned a series of shots at goal.
There were notable runs from Dafydd James and Morgan Stoddart, yet Connacht remained ahead on the scoreboard with their initial defence particularly strong.
Unfortunately for Bradley’s men, once Manu plunged over for the opening try, 18 minutes in, the game gradually fell away from their grasp.
The Scarlets used the lineout as their launching pad and the powerfully-built Manu was unstoppable from close range, after a good build-up involving James and Nathan Brew.
Jones missed the conversion but he made Manu’s second touchdown a seven-pointer, after the New Zealander had shrugged off Ronan Loughney’s tackle to pile over the line.
Connacht did have their share of possession in the first half. Their movement was too lateral though, and when Aidan Wynne was freed into space by Keith Matthews, the Scarlets cover was quick to cut him off.
Keatley drew jeers from the Stradey Park faithful when his 29th-minute drop goal skimmed along the turf and Connacht’s hopes were further dented, three minutes later, when centre Matthews was sin-binned for failing to release the ball at a ruck.
With Keatley off injured, Bradley had to introduce Australian Liam Bibo and the visitors missed a chance to add to their tally, just before the interval, when full-back Troy Nathan was off target with a penalty from distance.
The Scarlets had their own injury problems as a rib injury robbed them of the services of the in-form Dafydd James for the second half.
Nonetheless, the Welsh region put the game beyond Connacht as early as the 49th minute when replacement Jonathan Davies and Brew both scored in quick succession.
Davies, the Wales Under-20 star, showed his pace and power as he got on the ball and handed off Gavin Duffy before galloping over close to the posts.
Jones added the extras and the bonus point try, probably the best of the evening, soon followed.
It was a real team score and confirmed that the Scarlets could be a force to reckon with in this season’s league, if they can keep up these high standards.
Easterby began the move with some neat interplay. He set centre Rob Higgitt free just as he was about to be tackled.
With the Connacht defence breached, Stoddart, Roberts, the industrious David Lyons and experienced prop Phil John all carried forward before Brew, who had been switched to the wing, coasted over and in behind the posts. Jones converted again.
Little was going right for Connacht at this stage and the Scarlets rubbed salt into the visitors’ wounds with further tries from Stoddart (62 and 76 minutes) and Mark Jones (67).
Full-back Stoddart, the man-of-the-match, and winger Jones sliced through a demoralised Connacht rearguard, leading to lusty cheers from the 6,041-strong crowd.
Stephen Jones insisted afterwards that the win was ‘the perfect farewell to the Magners League at Stradey Park’ and he could hardly be wrong with the Scarlets now sitting top of the table on points difference, just ahead of the Ospreys.
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