Rhys Patchell and Scott Williams claimed second-half tries for the Scarlets, while the ever-reliable Leigh Halfpenny contributed 19 points from the kicking tee as the hosts made La Rochelle pay for their indiscipline.

In a frantic first half La Rochelle struggled to stay on the right side of the law at the breakdown, allowing the metronomic boot of Halfpenny to chip away at the scoreboard as the Wales full-back kicked all four of his penalty kicks.

Despite their indifference in defence, TOP 14 heavyweights La Rochelle kept the game in the balance with captain Romain Sazy seizing an opportunistic try in the right corner, before Alexi Bales’ three-pointer on the cusp of half-time trimmed the deficit to just two points.

Halfpenny restored a five-point advantage for Scarlets shortly after the restart, before fly-half Patchell slid home an excellent finish to claim a first try for the home side on the hour after a fine Hadleigh Parkes break in midfield.

Scarlets, though, only had a 12-point buffer and when replacement forward Will Boyde was sent to the sin bin, La Rochelle hopes were rejuvenated with 10 minutes to play, only for Wales centre Williams to pierce the visitors’ defence and race home a superb second try.

Halfpenny added another conversion to take his tally in the Champions Cup to 12 from 12, before replacement winger Pierre Boudehent added what was scant consolation for La Rochelle with a breakaway try, but it could not stop the Scarlets party.

The Welsh region would be stopped in their quest for a first European crown by eventual winners Leinster Rugby, who defeated Scarlets 38-16 at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin at the last four stage.

Today we take a look back at this day in 2018, when Scarlets reached the European Rugby Champions Cup semi-finals for the first time since 2007 with a 29-17 triumph over La Rochelle in front of a capacity crowd at the Parc y Scarlets.