Scarlets v London Irish: Teams

Scarlets coach Nigel Davies wants his side to show the same character and commitment that saw them beat London Irish 27-25 at the Madejski Stadium.

The Exiles head to the Parc y Scarlets for the return fixture knowing they have yet to beat the Llanelli-based side in the Heineken Cup.

But Davies knows his players need to match their display from October's match if they are to keep alive their hopes of finishing second in the pool.

"We were able to get pretty much our strongest team on the field for that game - with most of our internationals available," said Davies.

"Our pack went well and our set piece gave us a great platform, which was no mean achievement against a formidable team like London Irish.

"We established a platform to play off and we were able to react to the game as it unfolded, and in the second half we dominated the game.

"We stuck in there and showed resilience and belief when they got a break away try and that's the type of commitment and character that we are going have to show again on Sunday."

Ambition

The Scarlets will be without Stephen Jones for the match, with Rhys Priestland handed the No.10 jersey. Morgan Stoddart and Josh Turnbull also come into the starting XV.

London Irish coach Toby Booth is expecting an entertaining encounter as his side look to build on their back-to-back wins over Brive.

"In the reverse fixture last October both teams played with flair and ambition and I'm sure this match will be similar," said Booth.

"Our Heineken Cup pool has certainly lived up to its advance billing with all our matches to date proving to be competitive and exciting for our supporters. We are currently well placed to progress to the next stage of this great tournament and will be going all out to establish a winning momentum on Sunday."

The Exiles have made five changes to their line-up from their last match (against Northampton on January 2).

In the pack, former Springbok Faan Rautenbach is named at tighthead prop, while Richard Thorpe starts at blindside flanker.

In the backs, centre Elvis Seveali'i and fly-half Ryan Lamb both start, while Tom Homer moves to the left wing.

Scarlets: 15 Daniel Evans, 14 Morgan Stoddart, 13 Sean Lamont, 12 Jonathan Davies, 11 Andy Fenby, 10 Rhys Priestland, 9 Martin Roberts, 1 Iestyn Thomas, 2 Ken Owens, 3 Deacon Manu, 4 Lou Reed, 5 Dominic Day, 6 Rob McCusker, 7 Josh Turnbull, 8 David Lyons.
Replacements: 16 Emyr Phillips, 17 Phil John, 18 Jamie Corsi, 19 Damian Welch, 20 Johnathan Edwards, 21 Lee Williams, 22 Dan Newton 23 Gareth Maule.

London Irish:15 Delon Armitage, 14 Peter Hewat, 13 Elvis Seveali'i, 12 Seilala Mapusua, 11 Tom Homer, 10 Ryan Lamb, 9 Paul Hodgson, 8 Chris Hala'Ufia, 7 Steffon Armitage, 6 Richard Thorpe, 5 Bob Casey, 4 Nick Kennedy, 3 Faan Rautenbach, 2 David Paice, 1 Clarke Dermody.
Replacements: 16 Danie Coetzee, 17 Dan Murphy, 18 Paulica Ion, 19 Kieran Roche, 20 Gary Johnson, 21 John Rudd, 22 Peter Richards, 23 Chris Malone.