Llanelli v Connacht: It's been the story of Connacht's season that they meet sides on the rebound from a defeat, and Llanelli's late two-try salvo to earn a bonus point in Thomond Park will have been a timely lift. There's been no great shame in their three defeats so far, and the Scarlets showed they can cut loose with further bonus points in their two wins.
In addition, they undoubtedly have a stronger hand than last week given Gareth Jenkins welcomes back Dwayne Peel, Scott Quinnell and Salesi Finau into a full-strength side, and they'll be looking for a significant benchmark prior to their annual holy grail in Europe (they have a bye next week).
Stradey Park has been a lucky stomping ground for Connacht, admittedly, as last season they recorded a stunning win in the Celtic Cup quarter-finals there - making them one of only three visiting teams to beat the Scarlets at Stradey since regional rugby was introduced. Furthermore, their subsequent 33-all draw there meant they were the only away side to avoid a defeat at Stradey in the Celtic competitions last season.
However, Michael Bradley also has one eye on Europe in selecting what he admits is something of an experimental line-up for this game. In some instances, this has been forced on him by a number of injuries, leaving him without some of the mainstays of the Connacht side, namely: Bernard Jackman, John O'Sullivan and Darren Yapp, with the latter two struggling for the two-legged Challenge Cup meetings with Narbonne in two and three weeks' time.
So far, Connacht have acquitted themselves reasonably well and lie fifth, albeit after a favourable enough opening five fixtures. "We're happy with the accumulation of points so far, but there's more in us. We can get better, although it's a noticeably stronger competition this season," says Bradley.
The Connacht coach is looking for a much improved defensive performance, as was the hallmark of much of their best days last season, and they'll probably need to.
"Llanelli haven't changed much from last year. They're a big side, well structured.
"The trick with Llanelli is to break down their structure. Then you can give yourself an opportunity. If you let them play their own game then you're in trouble."
SCARLETS: G Evans; T Selley , M Watkins, M Taylor, S Finau; G Bowen, D Peel; I Thomas, M Rees, J Davies, V Cooper, C Wyatt, S Easterby (capt), S Quinnell, G Thomas. Replacements: P John, C Hawkins, A Jones, D Jones, A Powell, A Thomas , M Phillips.
CONNACHT: D Slemen; T Robinson, J Downey, M McHugh, C McPhillips; P Warwick, C O'Loughlin; R Hogan, J Fogarty, S Knoop, P Myburgh, A Farley, M Swift, M Lacey, M Carroll. Replacements: H Bourke, A Clarke, C Short, J Muldoon, M Walls, E Elwood, C Keane.
Referee: Andrew Ireland (Scotland).
Previous meetings: (03-04) CC Q-f: Llanelli Scarlets 12 Connacht 14; CL: Connacht 20 Llanelli Scarlets 25; CL: Llanelli Scarlets 33 Connacht 33.
Formguide: Llanelli: 26-15 v Borders (a); 6-23 v Osrpeys (h); 0-15 v Dragons (a); 37-16 v Edinburgh (h); 13-19 v Munster (h). Connacht: 31-15 v Glasgow (h); 27-27 v Munster (a); 13-19 v Ulster (h); 6-31 v Cardiff (a); 29-27 v Borders (h).
Leading try scorers: Llanelli: Garan Evans 2. Connacht: Niall O'Brien, Conor O'Loughlin 2 each.
Leading points scorers: Llanelli: Arwel Thomas 18, Gareth Bowen 14. Connacht: Paul Warwick 40.
Forecast: Llanelli to win.
