Halfpenny leads Scarlets' 36-27 win over Connacht

Scarlets 36 - 27 Connacht, Llanelli

Leigh Halfpenny kicked 16 points as Scarlets maintained their top position with a 36-27 win over Connacht in their Pro 14 clash in Llanelli on Friday.

Johnny McNicholl (7'), Steffan Evans (17') and Rhys Patchell (24') scored tries in the first 25 minutes and their bonus point came 13 minutes later when Halfpenny scored a converted try. The Wales international also added two more conversions to take Scarlets to 26 points at half time.

Connacht were not far behind either in the first half as Jack Carty slotted a converted try and a penalty. The fly-half also added the conversion to Tiernan O'Halloran's touchdown and Cian Kelleher went past the line in the 35th minute to reduce the gap to just four points heading into second half.

A penalty from Halfpenny in the 59th minute stretched Scarlets' lead to seven points but as the game was heading for a tight finish, O'Halloran contributed with his second try in the 73rd minute but a missed conversion meant the Irish side were two points behind.

Any chance of a Connacht triumph were put to rest by a try from Tadhg Beirne in the 77th minute and Halfpenny capped off a fantastic game with his fourth conversion to complete a 36-27 win for Scarlets.