Peel says Scarlets are ‘worthy of dining at rugby's top table’

SCARLETS boss Dwayne Peel says his side proved they are worthy of dining at European rugby's top table despite falling agonisingly short in their Champions Cup return.

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The west Walians were edged out 17-16 by Bristol Bears at Parc y Scarlets - a single point separating the sides in the region's first appearance in the competition for three years. Louis Rees-Zammit's decisive try ultimately settled a bruising encounter that could easily have gone the other way.

Peel, however, was adamant his players had shown exactly why they deserve to be back among Europe's elite.

"I'd hope the 7,000 people who were here go away thinking they saw their team put up a massive fight, because that's what I saw," he said.

"I was really proud of the effort we put in. It was a one-point margin in the top tier of European rugby. That's the level.

"Put performances like that together and we can see that we belong here."