Winger Tom Rogers scored the match-winning try as Scarlets rallied to punish the Bulls for a dubious red card in Llanelli on Friday night.
The Wales flyer stepped three Bulls defenders in the 22 to put the hosts into a decisive one-point lead with nine minutes remaining, capitalising on the advantage created by Italian referee Federico Vedovelli, who four minutes earlier had given hooker Johan Grobbelaar a straight red card for making incidental head contact with Scarlets rake Marnus van der Merwe.
Scarlets won 23-22.
Canan Moodie, Zak Burger and Kurt-Lee Arendse combined to put the tourists into a 19-10 lead at the break, despite Vedovelli’s reluctance to reward a dominant Bulls scrum with penalties.
For Scarlets, flanker Josh McLeod crossed in the first quarter before the tables turned in the second half when wingers Blair Murray and Rogers scored 30 minutes apart to hand the Bulls their second reverse at Parc y Scarlets in as many attempts.
The 23-22 defeat in round 5 marks the Bulls’ first loss of the 2024-25 United Rugby Championship, while Scarlets improve to 2-1-2.
In round 6, the Bulls travel to Treviso to battle Benetton, and Scarlets dig in at home for a visit from Zebre.
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