Welsh rugby's seismic decision: Everything that's happening behind the scenes (original) (raw)

Over the next month the future direction of Welsh rugby will be decided.

The Welsh Rugby Union and its four professional clubs - Cardiff, Dragons, Ospreys and Scarlets - are all busy devising a new long-term strategy for the professional game in Wales. Meetings have been taking place on a weekly basis for months, with the importance of this plan not lost on those who hold power in Welsh rugby.

At the top of the to-do list will be how to make Wales' four professional sides successful. The WRU acknowledge it needs a strong professional game underpinning the men's national side if the game in this country is to get back on track.

SIGN UP: Get the new exclusive Inside Welsh rugby newsletter for full insight into what's really going on behind the scenes.

Rugby correspondent Steffan Thomas takes an in-depth look at the WRU's new proposal and the current state of play in Welsh rugby.

What's being discussed?

Currently Wales' four professional sides are mulling over an offer which will see the WRU take circa £14m worth of debt away from the regions and onto their own balance sheet. The remaining debt will be restructured on more favourable terms in order to ease the pro clubs' cash flow issues by at least £1m a year.

The WRU are also working on a plan to increase payments to the four professional clubs but an uplift of funding can be difficult to get past the board, with other areas of Welsh rugby, be it the women's game or the community game, wanting their own piece of the pie. But the WRU intend to eventually reach a position where all four clubs have playing budgets of £6.5m, but it would take a few years to get to that figure with there being a gradual increase.

In return the WRU would take a 20% equity stakes in all four sides and would have a greater say over some key appointments. Under the proposed new agreement, Warren Gatland will have a say on the number of minutes each Wales squad member plays, what position they are played in and in some instances which Welsh club they play for.

For example, if the Scarlets had three Wales internationals stacked in one position, Gatland could influence inter-contract transfers by placing one of them at the Ospreys, subject to the player in question agreeing to the move. The WRU would also have a say over who each side appoints as CEO and more influence over the director of rugby, coaches and strength and conditioning plans.

They wouldn't have absolute power but it's fair to say their influence would be far greater than it currently is. Also, both the WRU along with its four professional clubs hope to make savings through greater collaboration and shared services and inventory, along with working together to grow the game commercially. The new agreement has not been signed yet but the intention is to get it completed by early November.

However, it needs to be emphasised that no deal has been agreed yet and WalesOnline understands two clubs are in favour while two are far from convinced.

Is this a good deal?

There are certainly pros and cons. Needless to say, the pro teams will be happy to have a significant chunk of debt taken off their balance sheet, while the increase in central payments is welcome, even if it isn't at the level where they can truly compete for silverware.

The general consensus is that a £6.5m playing budget can get you into the play-offs but probably won't result in a Welsh club lifting trophies given the talent is spread too thinly across four sides. Also, they are not expected to go from £4.5m budgets to £6.5m in a year, this will happen over a few seasons.

But has Welsh rugby actually got time on its side? Arguably not.

There is also a school of thought that as a matter of principle the WRU should be paying that debt off because it's money they should have paid the clubs during Covid. For the WRU to pass that debt onto the four pro clubs was arguably wrong in the first place.

In my opinion, the WRU has underpaid its supply chain for over a decade and has not adequately compensated the professional clubs for access to their players. All four clubs are independent businesses so it might be argued why should they give up control for money the WRU should be paying in the first place?

Also, if the WRU take more debt onto their own balance sheet that could mean they have less money to invest into the professional game in the long run. Those are questions powerbrokers at all four professional sides will be asking, but it undoubtedly improves their financial position in the short to medium term at least and provides some oxygen for them to stay alive for now.

In terms of the WRU and Gatland having more control, again there are pros and cons. From a player welfare perspective nobody could argue against there being a limit on the number of minutes players take to the field each season, especially if they are regular internationals.

Gatland having a greater say in what club a certain player represents or what position he plays certainly helps the national side to an extent. But at the end of the day, selection is a matter of opinion and it is commonplace for different coaches to disagree over a players' selection or best position.

There would undoubtedly be some friction in this regard. But what is most important is the spirit of the relationship.

Historically there has been a lack of trust between the WRU and the four professional clubs so you can understand why they are wary of giving up an element of control. On paper, a greater collaboration between the WRU and the clubs is a positive but should this deal get signed, any decision made has to be mutually beneficial for both club and country.

One of the obvious questions this proposal raises is what sort of relationship does the new WRU board and its executive want with the four pro clubs? Is it one of partnership and mutual respect or one of control?

Historically, the latter has been the case but there was early indication following the appointment of Abi Tierney that partnership would be an important principle going forward. But a proposal where the WRU is seeking an equity stake in the clubs and greater operational influence suggests not only has little changed but that the principle of increased control could become a reality.

Are the WRU going to try to cut a professional side and should they do so?

When the WRU announced its headline strategy for the game in Wales a few months ago, they also revealed there was a five-year funding gap of £29m to the professional game. WRU CEO Abi Tierney was very clear if they could not come up with a workable plan to sufficiently bridge that gap then they would look at reducing the number of professional teams or try to implement a tiered funding model.

There are those within the upper echelons of the game who believe Wales' player pool is spread far too thinly and a concentration of talent into fewer teams would drive up standards. Also, the reality is there is not enough money in Wales to have four professional sides competing at the cutting edge of competitions, certainly not within the current URC format.

But cutting a side would present huge hurdles with inevitable legal challenges and the need to pay redundancy costs. The hope is more professional-quality players will be produced over the coming seasons to service four sides but money will always be an issue in Wales and the first question which needs to be asked is what can they afford?

It’s often claimed a base of four clubs is needed to support international rugby in Wales, but even the most cursory of investigations shows this to be completely untrue. If you look across the professional game there are at least 40 players playing professionally in Wales who will never be selected by Gatland.

For evidence of this, see how Gatland chose a player from Japan’s fourth division in Cory Hill over the likes of Joe Davies or Rory Thornton. So, Gatland isn’t selecting from a base of four clubs, but rather the squad of three sides spread across the four Welsh teams.

By that, it’s clear that international selection would not be negatively affected by moving to three but rather the standard would rise in the long run, especially with a 2+1 model. Add on to the talent issue the fact Wales cannot financially sustain four professional clubs with competitive playing squads to challenge for the top end of competitions.

Even the WRU realises that squad playing budgets need to be north of £7m to be successful. The reality is selecting players from clubs who are languishing towards the bottom of the URC table is not sufficient preparation for Test match rugby and Gatland needs most of his squad plying their trade in Wales for optimum preparation time.

Regardless, WalesOnline understands the WRU are going to retain four sides as part of this new strategy.

The Wales Rugby breaking news and top stories WhatsApp community has launched - and thousands of fans have already joined. You can expect the day's top stories and major updates sent directly to your WhatsApp from our team - allowing you to stay up to date with all the latest Welsh rugby news for free.

All you have to do to join is click on this link , select 'Join Community' and you're in. We will not spam your feed with constant messages, but you will receive daily updates . We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners.

If for some reason you decide you no longer want to be in our community, you can leave by clicking on the name at the top of your screen and clicking 'Exit Group'. We occasionally treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. You can read our Privacy Notice here.

JOIN OUR WHATSAPP COMMUNITY HERE

What league will Welsh teams play in?

To cut a long story short, both the United Rugby Championship and the Gallagher Premiership are looking at ways to increase the value of future broadcasting deals with neither competition achieving the level of commercial success it wants. Talks between the relevant powerbrokers are ongoing and a number of proposals are being discussed.

One idea is a merger between both leagues into a two-division competition with promotion and relegation. But the Welsh sides would like an Anglo-Welsh conference to sit within the URC where they would play English sides throughout the season before an end-of-season play-off format with the rest of the tournament.

The Welsh clubs are of an opinion more regular fixtures against English clubs would significantly reduce travelling, reignite historic rivalries and potentially lead to improved attendances, while there is also a salary cap in England which would increase the chances of the Welsh sides being competitive. But there is a lot of work to be done.

WalesOnline understands PRL would prefer only two Welsh clubs in their competition which is obviously a very big sticking point, but the conversation is still very much alive.

When will the strategy be announced?

The target is for the strategy to get announced in early November but that is obviously dependent on whether the professional clubs agree to this new proposal. Whatever happens, the future of Welsh rugby is on the line.