Peel is the only Scarlet not to be cleared for Powergen action

Johnson said he could not afford to see his scrum-half injured in Saturday's Powergen Cup semi-final ahead of Wales' 11 March Six Nations game with Italy.

The Scarlets say they do not want to make the player choose between club and country but are "badly disappointed".

"We are concerned the tournament's been undermined," said a club statement.

By isolating Dwayne, Johnson put him in an impossible position Scarlets statement

"The Cup brings in �1m to the four Welsh regions, and we believe that the sponsors and broadcasters have been shabbily rewarded for supporting this new tournament."

The other three semi-finalists - Bath, Leicester and Wasps - will have all their international stars available for the Millennium Stadium double-header.

Wales squad members Matthew Watkins, Mark Jones, Barry Davies, Dafydd James, Alix Popham and Matthew Rees all play, with Dafydd Jones and Lee Byrne on the bench.

But Johnson - who has second-choice scrum-half Gareth Cooper out for the season with a dislocated shoulder - refused to release Peel.

If Scarlets can't beat Bath with a full team less one player, they need to ask themselves questions From Jimmy Bob Have your say on Scrum V

He threatened to invoke a gentleman's agreement between the Welsh Rugby Union and the regions that guaranteed the release of first-choice internationals the week before a Test.

That deal was struck before the Anglo-Welsh Powergen Cup was introduced, but the Scarlets did not want to challenge it for the sake of Peel.

"By isolating Dwayne, Johnson put him in an impossible position," said the Scarlets.

"We didn't want to make things more difficult for him by making him choose.

"The procrastination over the release of our other internationals has also hampered our preparations for a showcase event.

"Their release was only confirmed on Monday evening, yet we have been asking for clarification since December.

"We would like to apologise to the sponsors, broadcasters and our supporters for not being able to field our best side like the other three semi-finalists."