THE Scarlets head to Dublin this weekend with head coach Simon Easterby urging his side to continue their rehabilitation as play-off contenders.
Back-to-back home wins over Connacht and Munster have lifted the Scarlets into fourth in the RaboDirect Pro12 standings with seven rounds remaining.
And the West Walians will take on third-placed Leinster on Saturday evening (7.45) knowing that a hat-trick of Irish scalps will put them right in the mix for the end-of-season shoot-out.
Only six weeks ago the Scarlets were being swamped by a relentless blue tide in a 33-14 Heineken Cup defeat at the RDS.
But after licking the wounds of their European whitewash, the Scarlets are heading across the Irish Sea on a three-match winning run and with the firm belief that they can keep on climbing the table.
"This period was always going to be crucial and this is another big game in terms of playing a side in a similar position to ourselves," said Easterby.
"We have come off the back of a couple of losses to Leinster (in Europe) and we have to be really on our mettle to get a result against them.
"Hopefully, the side that played against Munster last weekend won't change too much. At the moment we are picking on performance and the continuity in selection is helping our performance."
With Six Nations action resuming this weekend, both sides will be hit hard by international calls.
Leinster will be minus a host of their star names, among them Brian O'Driscoll, Rob Kearney, Jamie Heaslip, Sean O'Brien and the injured pair of Jonny Sexton and Gordon D'Arcy, while the Scarlets will also again be missing their strike weapons of George North and Jonathan Davies as well as centre Scott Williams and hooker Ken Owens, who have again been named among the Welsh replacements for Saturday's clash with Italy at the Stadio Olimpico.
The Scarlets could be bolstered by national squad members Matthew Rees, Tavis Knoyle, Josh Turnbull and Liam Williams, while Aaron Shingler could also feature in Dublin if he is not named among the travelling party heading to Rome.
"Speaking to a couple of the internationals who weren't involved against Munster last weekend, they are keen to come back," added Easterby.
"The competition is key for us. It is a positive that we have a lot of players fit here — we are lucky that we have got a really low injury rate at the moment — and a lot of players in the Welsh camp who are keen to come back and make an impact."
The Scarlets will give a fitness test to utility back Gareth Owen, who limped off after taking a knock to his knee during the 18-10 win over Munster.
South African Prop Jacobie Adriaanse also suffered a 'stinger' shoulder injury.
