Deja vu, isn't it?

By Behind the Bench
January 13 2017

Saracens travel to Carmarthenshire bidding to set a new record of consecutive wins (14) in top flight European competition, having already levelled with Munster's Heineken Cup run between 2006 and 2008.

Although Scarlets, the sole Welsh representative in the Champions Cup, look unlikely to qualify for the Quarter Finals this season, and indeed the Welsh region have not featured in the top flight knock-out stages since 2007, they have generally served up a couple of eye-catching results each season, and this campaign has proved no exception as the home win over Sale in the first match was followed up by a notable success against Rugby Club Toulonnais in West Wales.

Since their defeat at Allianz Park where the visitors impressed in attack during the 44-26 defeat, the Llanelli-based side have put their subdued start to the season behind them, and are on a current spell of eight wins from eleven, including home wins against Leinster and Glasgow alongside the Toulon win, and the only reverses coming in France and closer to home at the Ospreys, as well as at Newport in the Anglo Welsh tournament. There have been plenty of points too, with a number of entertaining victories, and something of a fortress is emerging at Parc Y Scarlets, where the hosts have won all of their games, with the exception of the opener when they lost to present Guinness Pro12 leaders Munster. 

After their trip to NW4, Scarlets won 26-15 at Cardiff Blues, where flowing attacks from deep yielded tries for Aaron Shingler, Jonathan Evans, DTH Van der Merwe and Hadleigh Parkes, and some stout defending thwarted a home comeback. Into November, and Glasgow were seen off 27-3 as Will Boyde finished off a fine team try, and more stylish play set up Jonathan Evans for the second, ahead of a third try for Shingler as forward power proved decisive, but a bonus point eluded them. In an excellent second half display in the Anglo Welsh competition, the West Wales side overturned a 21-9 interval deficit to beat Bath 44-21, through a mixture of a powerful maul and assured handling as the region demonstrated its strength in depth. The impact was spoilt a bit by the subsequent 36-21 loss at Newport Gwent Dragons in the same tournament.

However, momentum was continuing to gather in the Pro12 league as then-leaders Leinster were the latest side to lose at Parc Y Scarlets, handed a 38-29 loss to round off November in the top four; Johnny McNicholl's intercept try getting things underway before Werner Kruger finished off a rolling maul, and Steff Evans added the third from close range. More neat passing set up the bonus point score for Boyde and Ryan Elias provided a fifth. Into December, and Scarlets scored another five tries in a 31-24 win at Zebre. A smart counter attack by Jonathan Evans, who scored a second later, got things moving with further scores from Shingler, van der Merwe and Aled Thomas. The trip to the south of France brought a 31-20 loss at Toulon.

Recent weeks have seen the Scarlets successfully closing out some tight matches, beginning with the thrilling 22-21 home win over the French side, although a Scott Williams try had seen them lead 10-0 at one stage, but just about keeping the visitors at bay, as they failed to score a try and missed a match-winning kick. The derby at Swansea was lost 19-9, but the first day of 2017 brought a 15-10 home win over Cardiff Blues, completing the double over their fellow region, thanks to sharp finishes from Steff Evans and Scott Williams, whilst a penalty try helped to earn a 16-13 home victory over Ulster. 

It's far from a foregone conclusion for Saracens, who, despite their perfect record so far in the competition, still have some work to do to claim the expected home Quarter Final. The Scarlets side looks particularly well balanced at the moment, with a combination of an exciting backline which can conjure up individual and team tries, allied to a pack which is strong defensively and from the rolling maul. From a Sarries perspective, given that Brad Barritt has played the majority of games, his replacement is the most crucial decision faced, as there needs to be defensive solidity against a side willing to run the ball at any opportunity, and this has been their strength in recent weeks rather than the level of attacking play which is lacking a certain sharpness at present. In a wider sense, given that both Marcelo Bosch and Duncan Taylor went off injured last Saturday, centre is a particular concern. That said, there are likely to be opportunities to counter attack, given the hosts' style of play, and an accurate kicking game seems vital.

With the long-rumoured signing of Scarlets back Liam Williams announced this week, the visitors will watch with interest where he plays. This seems likeliest to be at full back, although he has been mooted as a direct replacement for Chris Ashton. On the right wing for the region is likely to be Van der Merwe with Steff Evans on the left outside a centre partnership of Jonathan Davies and Parkes, and a half back combination of fly half Dan Jones and scrum half Gareth Davies. Pack-wise, Rob Evans should be at loosehead, Ken Owens at hooker and Samson Lee may return from injury at tighthead. Jake Ball and Tadhg Beirne are a possible second row duo with a back row of Shingler, Boyde and John Barclay. For Saracens, Alex Goode seems likely to be at full back, with Sean Maitland and Chris Wyles on the wings, and a centre partnership of Nick Tompkins and Owen Farrell, with Alex Lozowski and Richard Wigglesworth in the half-backs. Into the forwards, and Richard Barrington is free to form the front row with Jamie George and Juan Figallo, with a second row of Maro Itoje and Will Skelton, and back row trio of Michael Rhodes, Schalk Burger and Jackson Wray.

So, how will Saracens become record breakers? Dedication - that's what they need.