Toppling an empire is usually made all the easier when you have somebody at your disposal with some inside knowledge.

In Josh Turnbull, a former Scarlets player, Cardiff Blues had the perfect man at their disposal to help them to a sublime 34-5 victory at Parc y Scarlets in Round 12, ending their Welsh rivals’ 27-month unbeaten record at home.

💡 Player focus 💡

What an end to the year it was for @JoshTurn6ull, who stood out from the crowd in @cardiffblues‘ victory at @scarletsrugby

He was physical, abrasive and brilliant in defence pic.twitter.com/bgJgAV1Qu5

— PRO14 RUGBY (@PRO14Official) January 1, 2019

The 30-year-old, who moved to Cardiff from Scarlets in 2014, put on a masterclass at blindside flanker as his side made it back-to-back wins over opposition from Wales.

Put simply, Turnbull was a colossus at the breakdown, stamping his authority all over proceedings at every turn.

His impact was demonstrated perfectly by the way in which he set the Blues on their way to their first try of the game, the flanker stripping the ball away from a clutch of red shirts following a lineout and turning over possession – from there, the visitors produced a superb opening score.

Turnbull was a menace all game, successfully halting 22 opponents in their tracks as the Scarlets managed to score just one solitary try, their efforts rebuffed time and again.

The Haverfordwest native is unlikely to forget his man-of-the-match display in his final outing of 2018 anytime soon – more of the same must surely have been Turnbull’s New Year’s resolution.