Edinburgh Mount came back to defeat Scarlets at URC

Edinburgh overcame a spirited Scarlets side to secure a crucial bonus-point win in their bid to reach the United Rugby Championship play-offs.

Joe Roberts and Sam Lucy crossed to give Scarlets an early 14-point lead, while Ben Vellacott halved the deficit with a try just before half-time.

A try from Magnus Bradbury and another from Vellacott swung the momentum in Edinburgh’s favor after the break, and although Roberts’ second try led to a draw with the Scarlets, Harry Patterson’s effort for the hosts proved decisive.

The two teams were ranked 13th and 15th respectively in the table going into the match, and they knew the importance of victory if they were to make a realistic bid to reach the top eight.

The visitors started brighter and camped out in the Edinburgh half in the first quarter without finding a way through.

That was until Roberts sold a doll and sneaked it in so easily that he could operate it from halfway through.

Things got better for the Welsh side when Lucy drove into the corner to conclude a period of pressure and take a 14-point lead.

Edinburgh needed a response and they got it when Wes Goossen worked his way through the Scarlets defense and put Vellacott wide to score.

Trailing by seven goals at the break, Edinburgh came out firing early in the second half and scored with two quick tries.

Patterson counterattacked from deep and a succession of offloads and carries moved Edinburgh into the red zone. The ball was passed wide of Bradbury and the number eight did well to collect the pass and make his way to the goal line.

Ross Thompson converted to level things up and Edinburgh were soon in front for the first time.

Goosen did brilliantly to get past a couple of tackles and connect with Lange, who sent Vellacott wide with his second attempt of the evening.

Edinburgh were in front, but their momentum was checked when Patterson was sent into the sin box for a deliberate kick.

Scarlets wasted little time in capitalizing on their numerical superiority, passing the ball wide for Roberts to force a second try to level things up again at 19-19.

Patterson had barely gotten back into play when he came up with Edinburgh’s fourth try.

The full-back unleashed a bomb up the field, and Leggatt-Jones created chaos on the return kick to allow Patterson to attack, rally and go for the try that sealed the win for Edinburgh.

The bonus-point win moves Edinburgh up to 11th in the URC table ahead of Saturday’s matches, with Scarlets remaining in 15th.