John Mulvihill praised his Cardiff Blues for baiting the trap he insisted the Scarlets had fallen into after becoming the first team to win in Llanelli in the Guinness Pro 14 for over two years. It was a dominant, bullying 34-5 victory for the Blues on Saturday evening who were happy to let the Scarlets have plenty of ball, knowing they could do little with it other than hand over possession. A brace of tries from Ray Lee-lo plus a try apiece from Gareth Anscombe and Lloyd Williams was enough to see off Wayne Pivac’s side. All the Scarlet could muster was a first-half score from Johnny McNicholl.

Jonathan Davies has told his Scarlets teammates they need to be bold if they are to save their season in 2019. The Wales centre has urged the region to return to the swashbuckling style of a year ago when they host the Cardiff Blues on Saturday evening. Davies admits the Scarlets have been found wanting in recent weeks with seven defeats in their last nine matches, including four on the trot going into the latest Welsh derby.

Wayne Pivac has admitted his Scarlets team owe it to their fans to prevent a blip growing into a crisis. The Wales coach-elect has challenged his players to respond when they host the Cardiff Blues in Saturday’s Welsh derby following a four-game losing sequence. The region have seen their European dreams disintegrate in recent weeks and their Guinness Pro 14 ambitions also took a blow – not to mention their local pride – when they were beaten by the Ospreys just before Christmas.

Gareth Anscombe admitted the Cardiff Blues made hard work of their derby victory over 14-man Dragons in a game that the Wales fly-half will not be re-visiting in his dotage. Anscombe kicked a late penalty to deny the gritty visitors a draw at the Arms Park and earn a 19-16 victory, but neither team were capable of rising above the distinctly ordinary in demanding blustery conditions. The Dragons will be pleased with their resolve, but angered their temperament undermined their efforts after Neil Fairbrother was sent off after only half an hour for a flying elbow at a ruck.

Dragons flanker Aaron Wainwright believes the underdogs can find their bite when they face rivals Cardiff Blues at the Arms Park on Friday night. The back row forward – on the fringes of the Wales team despite the handicap of having to perform every week in a mostly losing line-up – insists the sacking of Bernard Jackman can be a catalyst for improvement at Rodney Parade. The Dragons lost again last week – their third defeat in a row where they have shipped over 45 points – but there were some signs for optimism, says Wainwright in their 49-24 reverse at Clermont Auvergne in the European Challenge Cup.

IT’S derby time when grounds will be packed over the holiday period and the battle for who’s best, east or west, will resume. Largely because of the Dragons’ ineffectiveness – to put it politely – the west has generally proved to be best which would delight the late, lamented Ray Gravell.

The hottest ticket in town will soon be Wales v England in the Six Nations. But what about the regions? How warm are those seats? Not heated by enough bums on them, according to Peter Jackson of The Rugby Paper, who has compared the numbers watching Wales’ favourite rugby team with those who supply all their players. A startling fact can be unearthed from the mound of attendance figures at the Millennium Stadium last month – that more than 36,000 fans support Wales at the expense of their regional teams.

Welsh interest in the Heineken Champions Cup – in terms of the knockout stages, at least – is already over. It contrasts sharply with the success of Wales in the autumn, so as we head towards the Six Nations, Geraint Powell tries to unravel the contradiction. It is always difficult to dispassionately analyse a Welsh autumn internationals campaign in the immediate aftermath, for the mood in Welsh rugby nowadays only ever veers wildly between “world beaters” or “the end of the world is nigh”. The story of the Warren Gatland era has been of disappointment in the November friendlies, relative to the Welsh performances in the tournament rugby of the Six Nations and the World Cup.

John Mulvihill has pleaded relative poverty after the Cardiff Blues succumbed to Saracens, so ending their hopes of any progress from the pool stages of the Heineken Champions Cup. The Blues coach – who is in his first season at the Arms Park after taking over from Danny Wilson – has claimed the Blues are the poorest of the 20 teams in European rugby’s premier tournament. Two teams from Wales are in the tournament this season – the Blues and the Scarlets – along with seven from England, six from France, three from Ireland and two from Scotland.

John Mulvihill has admitted his Cardiff Blues side struggle to match the depth of Saracens as he reflected on a seven-try hammering at the home of the English champions in the Heineken Champions Cup. The Australian must now try and patch up his team for the return clash at the Arms Park this weekend, following their 51-25 defeat which leaves them outsiders to make progress to the quarter-finals. Both teams were missing key players but the Blues – who led 18-13 at half-time – were blown away in the second-half and Mulvihill conceded there is a gap between the two squads.

Cardiff Blues coach John Mulvihill has told his players to put themselves in the spotlight by eclipsing Saracens on their own patch on Sunday afternoon. The Blues travel to Allianz Park to take on the English champions – a team that are unbeaten this season and are many pundits’ tip to retain their European crown. The Blues have won in Lyon but lost at home to Glasgow so far in Pool Three and their Australian coach has called on them to defy the odd again on their travels.

It’s crunch time in Europe, so Robin Davey looks at the big questions. Do the Scarlets have a backstop position against Ulster even though Leigh Halfpenny is injured? Can the Cardiff Blues avoid a very hard border crossing when they go to Saracens? And what was the advice from the WRU given to the Dragons before they published their teamsheet? Europe is back on the rugby agenda and though it’s only the second block of the pool stages at least one Welsh region is in danger of crashing out without a deal. Last minute soundings are being taken with some final persuading to be done as the Scarlets count down to the crucial Champions Cup vote tonight.