A host of legends from Scarlets teams of the past will be given a warm welcome to Parc y Scarlets on Saturday as part of a season-high crowd for the big West Wales derby.
Former players will reunite for a special celebration at Scarlets v Ospreys to lend their support to Dwayne Peel’s team and add to the growing excitement for the eagerly-awaited double derby in the West.
It will be the third event of the season to celebrate past players’ contribution to the famous jersey and to connect former players with the current squad as the club looks to the future.
Guests will include Stradey icons such as Delme Thomas, Roy Bergiers, Gareth Jenkins, Rupert Moon, Nigel Davies, Dai Fox, Laurence Delaney, Martyn Madden, David Hodges – who is flying in from America – to more recent stars like Aaron Shingler, Scott Williams, Rhys Priestland, Jonathan ‘Fox’ Davies; Simon Easterby, fresh from his Six Nations duties as Ireland interim coach as well as current head coaches Dwayne Peel and Mark Jones.
The reception will be hosted by Scarlets President Derek Quinnell, who has highlighted the= importance of maintaining close links between those who have represented the club over the years and today’s Scarlets community.
He said: “To see so many former players of our game from all eras linking up together to support this big event and to share stories and views on the way forward for this club is so important to us all as Scarlets. We are one family and celebrating our rich heritage and keeping it alive is something that is at our core.
“It is so important we recognise and respect our past successes as well as support our team now and look to the future with optimism.
“We thank all those who have played a part in our colourful and memorable rugby history throughout the years.”
With such a big rugby event just days away, former players have been sharing their memories of great derby encounters in the West and have wished Dwayne and his team the very best for the contest on Saturday.
MARTYN MADDEN
“I have great memories to tell you the truth. When we played it was fantastic. Coming from Cardiff, when you come down to West Wales and you’ve got to play Swansea or Neath, it’s a great occasion and a good battle for West Wales.”
NEIL BOOBYER
“We were playing down in Stradey Park at the time, a massive rivalry between the Jacks and Turks. We always wanted to get one over on them because of bragging rights. They were always incredibly intense games, a lot of boys knew each other from playing with Wales, but when you put on the Scarlets shirt and they put on a white shirt it was completely different.”
RUPERT MOON
“My memories of the Swansea Jacks and the battle of the Loughor are good because I won more than I lost. Cup finals wise I played three times against them. I’ve erased the one that we lost at Ninian Park, and it didn’t count because we played at a football ground!!
“We were always taught by Gareth Jenkins about the battle of the Loughor. They’re the city and we’re this little village in west Wales. It meant more than life itself. When we played at home it was heart and soul and all of that, and then when we played away we gave it a little bit more.
SCOTT QUINNELL
“The derbies were fabulous. You grew up watching Llanelli-Swansea games, whether they were in Stradey Park or St Helen’s. It was the typical big boys next door, the city slickers coming over the Loughor Bridge to Stradey. When you play for Wales and you play with a lot of the guys there’s that friendly rivalry as well, but as soon as you put that red jersey on, anything in white, it was very different!”