While Peel acknowledges results and performances have not be up to Scarlets’ standards this season, he said everyone was working hard to improve amid all of Welsh rugby’s uncertainties and budget cuts.

“What we’ve done over the last couple of seasons is transition a team,” he said.

“We’ve had to make a big transition in terms of losing some senior internationals and bringing some younger guys through.

“It’s a project that isn’t going to be a three month turnaround, we knew that.

“Are we happy with where we are this season? No. Are we happy with where we finished last season? Yes, we were probably on track to where we wanted to go, but we haven’t kicked on this season. There are reasons behind that, we’ve had some high profile injuries etc.”

Scarlets will aim to kick on in Europe, before returning to URC action when they host Ulster on Saturday, 24 January.