Leinster punish Scarlets as Glasgow Warriors retain URC top spot

GLASGOW ROUT BENETTON WITH BONUS-POINT WIN

Glasgow overcame a slow start against Benetton to cement their place at the top of the United Rugby Championship with a 31-10 victory at Scotstoun.

Paolo Odogwu danced through the home Glasgow defence, bumping off a weak tackle from hooker Johnny Matthews in the process, to propel the Italian club into a 16th-minute lead.

Rhyno Smith then landed a penalty to give Benetton a 10-7 interval lead after Matthews had capped off a series of forward drives by burrowing over from close range, but they were to be the visitors’ last points of the evening.

The second half was just two minutes old when wing Fergus Watson touched down in the right corner after Glasgow created quick ball thanks to a hard run by Sione Tuipulotu.

It was the cue for the floodgates to open with Max Williamson, Seb Stephen and Sam Talakai also crossing in a strong finish from the 2024 URC champions, whose pack took full control.

They enter the break for European action as URC pacesetters and have a 100 per cent record at home this season in all competitions.

22m Entries

Avg. Points Scored

2.3

13

Entries

Avg. Points Scored

0.7

10

Entries

LEINSTER’S CLASS TOO MUCH FOR SCARLETS

Leinster moved up to third in the United Rugby Championship with a 36-19 victory over Scarlets at Aviva Stadium.

The Irish province were made to work for their bonus-point win that saw them run in six tries, four of them in the second-half.

Wing Tommy O’Brien crossed twice in the third quarter to swing the game away from Scarlets.

The Welsh region were hamstrung by the first-half yellow cards shown to Joe Roberts and Jarrod Taylor, forcing them to play five minutes with only 13 men.

Joshua Kenny also ran in tries for Leinster, who fielded their Ireland stars ahead of next Sunday’s Investec Champions Cup round of 16 tie against Edinburgh.

Captain Fletcher Anderson was outstanding for the Scarlets, who remain third from bottom in the URC table.

CARDIFF GO DOWN FIGHTING AGAINST THE SHARKS

Ioan Lloyd landed a late penalty to secure Cardiff a losing bonus point in their 21-15 URC defeat by the Sharks at Kings Park.

Lloyd was on target in the 74th minute to reward the Welsh region for controlling the latter stages of their trip to Durban, although they did not make the most of their possession.

Cardiff trailed 21-12 from just before half-time until Lloyd kicked the game’s only penalty with the second-half turning into a bad-tempered arm wrestle in humid conditions.

Wales international Mason Grady ran in two tries before the interval but a pair of touch downs from Phepsi Buthelezi and a third by Yaw Penxe meant the Sharks stayed in front.

Flanker Buthelezi was named man of the match but it was his side that was doing all the defending in the final quarter with Callum Sheedy’s cross-field kick to Elijah Evans almost resulting in a try.

It completes an unsuccessful trip to South Africa for Cardiff, who were overwhelmed 40-7 by Pretoria a week ago.