Leigh Halfpenny has been labelled a true champion by Scarlets coach Brad Mooar after his goal-kicking decided a tense derby against Cardiff Blues. The Blues had been resurgent but they missed the chance to record a hat-trick of festive Welsh derby victories as the Scarlets sneaked a 16-14 win before a sell-out crowd at the Arms Park. After wins over the Ospreys and the Dragons, the Blues were narrow favourites for victory but poor goal-kicking cost them the match.

Angus O’Brien is set to continue to call the shots for the Scarlets as he closes the door on 2019 and looks to brighter days ahead in 2020. The 25-year-old outside-half suffered a horrific knee injury last season which wrecked his progress at the region and saw him slip firmly down the pecking order in Llanelli. But now the former Wales Under-20 international is back firing on all cylinders and says the pain of the past will drive him forwards as he looks to stay as first-choice fly-half at his club.

Brad Mooar has admitted he was given an offer too good to refuse after confirming he will leave the Scarlets at the end of the season to coach the All Blacks. The region’s head coach will return to New Zealand to become their attack coach – reducing his stay in west Wales to just one fleeting season. Mooar, who only took over from fellow Kiwi Wayne Pivac at Parc y Scarlets at the start of this season, will join Ian Foster’s staff in a new-look coaching team.

How do rugby players spend Christmas Day? For Wales forward Jake Ball, it’s pretty much every other dad, except for large helpings of  self-discipline and denial – at least until the Scarlets have played the Ospreys on Boxing Day, as he tells Graham Thomas. Giant Jake Ball will limit himself to one tiny helping of Christmas pudding the night before – to ensure he’s lean and mean on Boxing Day when he tries to make mincemeat of the Ospreys. The Wales forward – who requires plenty of forkfuls of the right food to fuel his 19-stones body – admits he has a bit of a weakness for festive cake and pudding.

Dean Ryan wants to keep Wales and Lions row star Ross Moriarty at the resurgent Dragons. Moriarty played a significant role as he came off the bench to help the Dragons beat the Scarlets 22-20 at Rodney Parade on Saturday. It was the Dragons’ sixth win in 12 matches this season under Ryan, who took charge in the summer.

Liam Williams has chosen to return to the Scarlets next season after being swayed by Wales coach Wayne Pivac. The Wales and Saracens star had been weighing up a £700,000-a-year move to French giants Toulon as the alternative to returning to his former region for £400,000. But after talks with Pivac over what being based in the south of France might mean to his availability for Wales, the 28-year-old has opted for the coastline around Llanelli, rather than the Cote d’Azur.

Former Swansea coach John Plumtree is set to be confirmed as part of the All Blacks coaching set-up tomorrow (Thurs) with the Scarlets’ Brad Mooar expected to soon follow. The pair are both keen to join newly appointed New Zealand head coach Ian Foster, who succeeded Steve Hansen after the World Cup. Plumtree is set to announce he is taking the role of forwards coach under Foster after his current employers, the Hurricanes, called a press conference to discuss their coaching situation.

Brad Mooar has revealed he is “torn” over whether to join Ian Foster’s All Blacks set-up after the Scarlets head coach was offered the chance to return to New Zealand at the end of the season. Mooar has made a big impact since arriving in Llanelli in July, but new All Blacks head coach Foster wants him as his attack assistant moving forwards. Discussions between New Zealand Rugby and the Scarlets are at an early stage with Mooar yet to decide on whether to stay in west Wales or return to the southern hemisphere and cut short the three-year deal he signed in Llanelli. An announcement isn’t expected until the New Year.

The Scarlets will demand £200,000 in compensation for allowing head coach Brad Mooar to join the All Blacks. The region have confirmed in a statement that Mooar is wanted by New Zealand as part of the backroom staff working for new All Blacks coach Ian Foster. Although the Scarlets are desperate to keep Mooar – who is only six months into a three-year contract – they have decided their best strategy is to negotiate a deal for a proportion of his remaining time and move on.

Stephen Leonard will follow in some illustrious Welsh footsteps when the Cambridge skipper leads out the Light Blues in the 138th Varsity Match at Twickenham today (Thurs). The former Llandovery College pupil has graduated into a back row regular at Grange Road and will win his third Blue at the home of English rugby, captaining a side that boasts 99 caps in the second row split between former Aussie James Horwill and Springbok giant Flip van der Merwe. A rugby player in his free time, Leonard’s day job as a PhD student is working on a project to try to find ways of fighting cancer. It is important work that will keep him at Cambridge until 2024.

The Scarlets are closing in on the signing of Wales star Liam Williams but face stiff competition from French giants Toulon. Williams’ contract at crisis-hit Saracens expires at the end of the current season and the 28-year-old has been weighing up his options. The Wales and Lions full-back visited Parc Y Scarlets recently and was impressed with head coach Brad Mooar’s vision for the region.