Overview
Cardiff Blues welcome Scarlets to the Welsh capital, with both teams desperate for a win in the race for a top three finish. With four games remaining, both sides currently sit in fourth place in their respective Conferences, and head into the encounter on the back of wins in the last round of Guinness PRO14 action.
Cardiff Blues sealed a bonus point win against Southern Kings at the Arms Park, while Scarlets gained a hard-fought victory over Munster at Parc y Scarlets.
Cardiff Blues: Gareth Anscombe; Owen Lane, Rey Lee-Lo, Willis Halaholo, Aled Summerhill; Jarrod Evans, Tomos Williams; Rhys Gill, Kristian Dacey (capt.), Dmitri Arhip, Josh Turnbull, Rory Thornton, Josh Navidi, Olly Robinson, Nick Williams
Replacements: Ethan Lewis, Rhys Carré, Dillon Lewis, Seb Davies, Shane Lewis-Hughes, Lloyd Williams, Harri Millard, Matthew Morgan
Scarlets: Leigh Halfpenny; Johnny McNicholl, Kieron Fonotia (capt.), Paul Asquith, Ioan Nicholas; Rhys Patchell, Kieran Hardy; Wyn Jones, Marc Jones, Samson Lee, Lewis Rawlins, Steve Cummins, Josh MacLeod, James Davies, Uzair Cassiem
Replacements: Ken Owens, Rob Evans, Werner Kruger, Josh Helps, Will Boyde, Gareth Davies, Dan Jones, Steff Evans
Last Time Out: Scarlets 5 Cardiff Blues 34
Cardiff Blues sealed a bonus point victory over their rivals in Llanelli in December to halt Scarlets’ 26-match unbeaten home streak in the Guinness PRO14.
Lloyd Williams and Johnny McNicholl exchanged tries in the first half, but John Mulvihill’s side clicked into gear after the interval to secure a comprehensive victory.
Willis Halaholo split open the home defence to set-up Rey Lee-Lo, before the Samoan international intercepted a Hadleigh Parkes pass to cross the whitewash for a second time.
Gareth Anscombe put the icing on the cake in the dying moments, plucking out Dan Jones’ attempted long-pass to cross for the bonus point.
Head-to-Head: Rey Lee-Lo v Kieron Fonotia
The two outside centres are team-mates with Samoa on the international stage, but will go head-to-head in an intriguing match-up in the midfield at Cardiff Arms Park this evening.
Fonotia has been in fine form since his summer move across the Loughor Bridge, particularly stepping up in the absence of Hadleigh Parkes and Jonathan Davies due to international commitments.
Meanwhile, Rey Lee-Lo continues to be a key figure in the Cardiff Blues backline, and the former Cardiff Blues Player of the Year has been in devastating try-scoring form this season, crossing the whitewash on eight occasions.
Matchday Guide
What’s On?
- Cor y Gleision and 3D Brass
- Guinness Six Nations trophy and Triple Crown on display
- Player signing and Umpa Lumpa Sweets in the Martyn Williams Pack Bar
- Fat Dragon Coffee stall in aid of Harriet Dow
- Half-time Cardiff Blues Community Foundation race
- Food and drink available
Ticket Office disruption
Due to an issue with Ticketmaster’s print at home facility recently and an anticipated sell-out crowd there could be larger than usual queues at the Ticket Office and Collection Points. Therefore we would encourage all supporters to collect their tickets as soon as possible.
All collections are available from the Ticket Office from 9am to 5pm.
From 5pm, North collections will remain at the Ticket Office and all collections for the South of the stadium will be available from the Collection Points at the Quay Street Entrance.
Cashless CAP
Cardiff Arms Park have gone cashless this season in order to reduce queuing times, improve speed of service and provide enhanced security to our guests. If you only have cash, there are redeemable vouchers are available to purchase on both sides of the ground.
*Athletic Club members bar will still retain cash services