Scarlets coach Nigel Davies hailed "just the start we needed" after his side
began their Heineken Cup campaign with a win over Brive.
Davies praises Scarlets performance in Cup opener
Scarlets coach Nigel Davies hailed "just the start we needed" after his side
kicked off their Heineken Cup campaign with a 24-12 home defeat over Brive.
The victory will no doubt come as a breath of fresh air for the Scarlets after they have previously suffered four consecutive losses in the Magners League.
The win is likely to inspire the Welsh team with some confidence ahead of their visit to the Madejski Stadium to face London Irish, who defeated defending Cup champions Leinster 12-9 in their opening match.
"We just had to win this game," said Davies. "The players knew that we had to win and that adds pressure
"But we came in with a focus and played the game we wanted to play.
"We did that for large parts of the game. We probably dominated possession and territory."
The coach also believes the match has put the Scarlets in with a fighting chance against Irish, who sit just below the top spot in the Guinness Premiership table.
"Overall it was just the start we needed, and we know that next week is an altogether different challenge.
"But the pressure will be on London Irish and we can go there and if we put one or two things right in our game, who knows?"
Dominant
Despite being dominant for long spells, the Scarlets fell behind twice in the first half.
They eventually prevailed with tries at the end of each half by wing Lee Williams and replacement prop Rhys Thomas, while Stephen Jones kicked 11 points and Rhys Priestland kicked a long-range penalty.
Andy Goode secured points for Brive with three penalties while Luciano Orquera took one, but the French team were deprived of a losing bonus point by Thomas' touchdown.
"I thought first half we dominated the game completely and we created a number of opportunities which we probably should have been more clinical with," added Davies.
"That was the disappointment, but the plus side was that we played the style we are trying to evolve.
"We actually break down defences but we are not actually finishing them."
Brive fly-half Andy Goode, who kicked three out of four of his team's penalties, believed his side should have at least received a bonus point for their efforts.
"We were under a bit of pressure in the first half," said the England number 10.
"We held on in there. They went in at half-time with an 11-9 lead but I didn't think by any means we were out of the game.
"With about six minutes to go in the match I think it was 17-12 we had a penalty which we kicked to the corner, but in my opinion we should have taken the three points.
"The Heineken Cup is all about small margins. We were just on the wrong side of it. But we should really have had a bonus point."
