Wales star Leigh Halfpenny kicked five penalties and converted crucial second-half tries from Rhys Patchell and Scott Williams to record a 19-point haul in Llanelli.
It was one of the most famous results in the proud, long history of the west Wales club and Wayne Pivac’s side will now face either Leinster or Saracens in the last four.
Here is the best of the reaction from the Scarlets camp after they came out on top over French opposition…
Captain and man of the match Ken Owens…
“I am just proud of the boys. We weren’t at our best, but we did what we needed to do. We can go up another level.
“La Rochelle turned up. It has been a long 11 years to get back up to this level. It has been a three-and-a-half year process. I am so proud of the effort the boys have put in to get back up to this level. We dare to dream and we can get better. Seeing everyone here, 16,000, it just means so much to me.
“We dig deep for each other. In big games, big moments happen and big players deliver. Some of our experienced players did that. La Rochelle threw everything at us and you are always going to be under pressure in big quarter-finals. But we dug deep and that turnover on our line was a massive turning point in the game.”
Head coach Wayne Pivac…
“We wanted to build some pressure and score some points early on. It didn’t matter if it came in threes and that’s how it turned out. There wasn’t a lot of ball in play, there were a lot of stoppages and I thought they were trying to slow the game down to get themselves right for the next set-piece.
“We thought they would move the ball a bit more than they did. We talked about expecting the unexpected in a knock-out game. We contained them pretty well in the first half, although we were pretty disappointed to concede the try. We fought back and got the points we needed.
“It says a lot about James Davies. He played on the wing for us in the semi-final last year and against the Ospreys earlier in the season, but we had one of two ways to go out there and putting him out there so early in the game shows the faith the coaches have in him. He did very, very well.
“The crowd did well to lift the boys and holding them out when it was 15-10 and La Rochelle were camped on our line was the turning point in the game.
“Leigh Halfpenny was outstanding, not just with his goal kicking but in his general play when he moved to the wing. He didn’t make a mistake. He never got hit over the touchline and his work over the ball for a smaller guy was very good. I thought he was one of the best players on the park.
“It is just about enjoying this moment now.”
Full-back Leigh Halfpenny…
“We knew it would be an arm wrestle. Credit to La Rochelle, they came here and they played. We probably tried forcing it a bit early doors, but we knew if we kept hold of the ball and kept going through the phases that the gaps would appear.
“That’s when we executed. When the chances came in the second half, we took them. This competition is all about playing the best teams in Europe. We will enjoy this and then start preparing for what is going to be a massive game in the semi-finals.”
Flanker James Davies…
“People were talking about it being a class game with both teams chucking it about, but it didn’t turn out like that. It is all about winning in these quarter-finals and we managed to do that.
“Hopefully we can now have a great day out in the semi-finals.
Try scorer Scott Williams…
“It was nice to get on the end of Cubby’s offload. He would make a half-decent wing. It is a great feeling and the support was awesome – it was like having a 16th man.
“There has been a buzz all week and we knew we could do something special and reach the semi-finals.
“Anything can happen now and I’ve just got to cherish this moment because I’m moving on at the end of the season.”
Injured centre Jonathan Davies, speaking as a BT Sport pundit…
“First and foremost you have to enjoy days like these. I’m sure Wayne will let them enjoy the night. Then they have to look forward to going back to the league. The semi-final is going to be an amazing occasion wherever it is and I think there will be a massive influx of Scarlets supporters.
“The effort the players put in during the first half was massive and it meant La Rochelle couldn’t get any momentum. They couldn’t get their offloading game going and their big men were knocked back in the tackle. They then showed composure in the second half to win the key battles.
“When they held out on their line and then went down the other end of the field and scored the try, that was the game.”
