Brothers Steven and Aaron Shingler meet as Cardiff Blues face Scarlets

Blues' Steven Shingler (left) will line up against his brother Aaron, who plays for Scarlets

Brotherly love might be thin on the ground for the Shingler boys as the Cardiff Blues square up to the Scarlets on Friday.

Older brother Aaron will be lining up for the visiting Scarlets, while Steven will take his place as fly-half for the Blues.

Their first regional competitive encounter as opponents will highlight a rivalry that has been there since the very start.

"He used to take my toys off me being the older one," said Steven.

"We used to be into boxing, so we had a few bouts. He used to go on his knees, I used to be standing up. He probably had the better of me then.

"We've only played against each other once before, during the Probables v Possibles [Wales trial] match at the Liberty Stadium in 2014.

"We didn't actually cross paths. I spent most of my time going back for restarts!

"We have always been playing against each other and, as the older brother, he has always probably had the better of me, so it would be good to get one over him."

At 25, Steven is four years younger than his brother.

But that hasn't stopped him landing the first blow when it comes to winding each other up before the Arms Park clash.

"We had dinner over at my parents' house and he wanted to come over to my place afterwards for a cup of tea, but he was locked out. I didn't answer the door," added Steven.

"He was flapping his arms outside. It probably wasn't a good idea given he is a bit bigger than me. It's all good fun."

In the battle of the brothers Aaron Shingler believes parental loyalties will be on his side as the Scarlets clash with the Blues

With the Blues sixth and the Scarlets seventh in the Pro12 table, the match is a chance for the visitors to leapfrog their opponents, while the Blues could go top temporarily.

Aaron is in no doubts about the significance of the derby as he and his Scarlets team-mates look to bounce back from a 44-26 defeat at the hands of Saracens in the European Champions Cup.

"It's a huge game for both teams," said Aaron.

"We are in mid-table. The Blues can pull away from us with a win, while we'd be right back on top of them if we got the result.

"We know where we have to improve. Steve Jones [Scarlets' attack coach] told us that our points tally against Saracens was the most they'd conceded at home since 2014. But we were disappointed with our defence. The performance was pretty good, but a loss is a loss."

There remains one important question as the two brothers go head-to-head: Just who will mum and dad be rooting for on the night?

"The Scarlets," said Aaron.

"The family are Scarlets supporters. They don't like the Blues."