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Scarlets skipper Ken Owens admitted his side had taken a "hiding" in the 57-14 defeat against Sale in the Heineken Champions Cup last 16 tie in Llanelli.

Sale fly-half AJ MacGinty finished with 32 points as the Sharks booked a quarter-final trip to La Rochelle.

Scarlets had no answer Sale's power and physicality.

"Nothing much went right. Rugby is a very simple game and we didn't match their physicality at all," said Wales hooker Owens.

Scarlets never recovered from conceding 23 unanswered points in the first half

"We made back-to-back errors - especially in the first 30 minutes - far too often, which played into their hands," added Owens.

"They came very direct, which we knew they would, and it is very difficult to stop when they get it right.

"Defensively they had some huge line-speed that we didn't deal with particularly well. They controlled the contact area, the gain-line and line-speed, which summed up the game.

"We were beaten by a better side on the day. We got dominated physically. We can't have any complaints.

"A lot of it is easy fixes. Dealing with the physicality of the game and not making errors. We have had a hiding today and we can't shy away from that.

"We are definitely a lot better side than what we showed tonight."

Scarlets were the fourth Welsh region defeated by English opposition in Europe this weekend, with Cardiff Blues, Ospreys and Dragons losing in the second tier Challenge Cup.

"It's not anything that the four of us would want," said Scarlets head coach Glenn Delaney.

"We always want to be better, we always want to compete.

"This is a knockout game in Europe and a tough fixture for us. All we can be concerned about is how we make ourselves better but, no, it has not been a good weekend."