Scarlets hooker Emyr Phillips says the region is relishing the opportunity of heading to Parma this weekend hoping to secure a win to keep the region atop of the table and ensure the best ever run of victories in the Guinness PRO12 in the region’s history.
Phillips, 28, says that the Scarlets are keen to ensure that the side is in a strong position come the end of the Rugby World Cup and international players returning from duty.
Speaking earlier this week Phillips said that the World Cup, despite disrupting the usual flow of the season, is a perfect opportunity for younger members of the squad to stake a claim for a place in the starting XV. He said: “There’s been a lot of focus in the last couple of weeks. A lot of the boys have come in and realised it’s a chance to play.
“We’ve spent all summer without the [international] boys. We have a core group of boys who’ve been together for the best part of four or five months probably. It’ll be a nice boost when the boys come back and we’ll hopefully stay in a good position for when they come back.”
Scarlets take on Zebre on Sunday having secured victories in the opening rounds over Glasgow and Ulster. Phillips went on to say: “It’s quite nice to have blocks at the moment. We targeted the first two games, it would be nice to stay top of the league, it would be a bit of a waste if we got ourselves in a good position and don’t perform this week.
“It’s a huge game, we know they’re going to be raring to go. We want to stay at the top.
“I’ve never had an easy game over there and getting an easy win over there isn’t the case. It’s a hard place to go with travel and everything, we realise how big a job it is.”
Phillips made a return to the field in the pre-season friendly against Newport Gwent Dragons in August, having undergone shoulder surgery earlier this year. He went on to say: “It’s nice to come back off the back of two shoulder ops. It feels good and it’s really good to be part of a good team effort at the moment.”
Scarlets will return to the Parc on Friday 16th October to take on Leinster in the first of three home Friday evening fixtures.
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