Leinster v Llanelli

[An Tarbh]

Leinster have the chance to go to the top of the Magners League this Friday if they manage to beat this Scarlets outfit tomorow evening.

The Scarlets league form has been poor of late but Leinster certainly won't be taking them lightly at Donnybrook.

All the Irish players released from the training squad will start for Leinster while Felipe Contepomi will captain the side. Guy Easterby will start at scrum half instead of Whitaker.

Both sides are equally hit with international call ups with With Dwayne Peel, Stephen Jones and Gavin Evans all away on Six Nations duty, Clive Stuart-Smith, Ceiron Thomas and Darren Daniel will all start.

Regardless of the call ups this still has the potential to be a great match, just hope Changleng doesn't make his mark.

Leinster: R McCarron; G Brown, K Lewis, M Berne, L Fitzgerald; F Contepomi, G Easterby; S Wright, B Jackman, W Green; T Hogan, C Jowitt; S Keogh, K Gleeson, J Heaslip.
Replacements: R Corrigan, B Blaney, O Finegan, D Toner/K McLaughlin, C Whitaker, C Warner/J Sexton, N Ronan.

Scarlets: Morgan Stoddart; Dafydd James, Regan King, Matthew Watkins, Darren Daniel; Ceiron Thomas, Clive Stuart-Smith; Iestyn Thomas, Ken Owens, Craig Dunlea, Vernon Cooper, Scott MacLeod, Dafydd Jones, James Bater (capt), Nathan Thomas.
Replacements: Deacon Manu, Aled Gravelle, Adam Jones, Inoke Afeaki, Liam Davies, Barry Davies, Garan Evans.

Referee: Malcolm Changleng (Scotland).

 

[PeeJay]

For once, despite all our losses due to internationals, I really believe the Scarlets have a decent side for this game, and we have every chance of winning it. The back line looks very impressive, apart from Clive Stuart-Smith but I'm sure he'll manage. In the forwards I think our only weaknesses are Ken Owens and Nathan Thomas, but I haven't seen much of either of those two playing so I hope they prove me wrong.

I'm predicting a narrow Scarlets victory in this one.

 

[DC]

gahh this is gonna be tough for leinster, especially with their pack looking bad as it has lately.

 

[An Tarbh]

Intensity of Magners league games doesn't even come close the HEC, even the recent big games with all the derbies don't have that same level and all the international players were there.

There's always going to be questions on our pack but we've only lost 2 players in the pack, McCormack through injury and O'Kelly to the Ireland team. At this level they should be more than capable, can't recall any ML match where the pack took a pasting like they did in Gloucester.

 

[loratadine]

leinster 44
scarlets 34

 

[An Tarbh]

and Leinster go top of the table as well, could last if the Ospreys do us a favour against Ulster this evening. I wouldn't have had the Scarlets down as ever being the bottom of the Welsh teams at any point during the season, but they're going to have to get their league form back on track sharpish.

 

[el_tk]

Leinster 44-34 Llanelli.

Worcester 3-3 Wasps.

Magners League>>>>>>>>>> Guinness Premiership

 

[DC]

guinness premiership is sooooooooo boring, maul after maul.

 

[Rugby_Cymru]

As much as i always want the welsh sides to win it was great to see Leinster so rampant at parts during that match.
They really were unstoppable and a bonus point felt inevitable for a while.
Very impressive.

 

[gjohn85]

At one stage I thought the Scarlets had the game won comfortably & then Leinster came back terrifically.