The Future for Regional / Professional Rugby

Wise of Ieuan Evans to step down. He was in the midst of a maelstrom he never expected but has pushed this through with Nigel Walker, so he can leave on a high note. I am not sure how he would fit in with the new structure anyway and the new appointments to be made. 

Ieuan has been on the board since 2020 and is definitely part of the problem, not the solution. His pitch to become chair involved telling the clubs he would make sure they weren't pushed out by the regions.

crj89 wrote: Wasp wrote: Ieuan has been on the board since 2020 and is definitely part of the problem, not the solution. His pitch to become chair involved telling the clubs he would make sure they weren't pushed out by the regions. He was there when Amanda Blanc resigned. He would have seen her letter and listened to her leaving speech, but I don't recall him speaking out. He deserves no credit at all in my opinion. He was backed into a corner by the BBC documentary and had no choice but to act when the Principality and others talked about walking away. As for Nigel, he did make some progress with the women's game and joined in Sep 21, so I can cut him some slack, but the Charlotte Wathan case has been known for a long time. I don't see how any of the current board or exec come out of this with credit, TBH. BBC and the sponsors forced them to act I didn’t like the way he backed Steve Phillips, looking after number one at that point, only when the optics needed to change then so did he.

Ieuan was advised - and his bid for the WRU Board engineered - by Roger Lewis, who wanted to protect his legacy and deliver his vision with Steve Phillips as CEO. Ultimately, when independent Board appointments became possible (as some governance changes were inevitable), this would pave Lewis's way back into Westgate Street.

Wil Chips wrote: Good posts, honest, fair and of course harsh to those that see Ieuan as a decorated ex player, a Scarlets legend and decent guy. I'm interested in how Walker's role plays out. Speaks well, has a couple of wins under his belt around the women's game, but I can't get passed his 'hold the regions feet to the fire' comment. It epitomized all that is wrong in the relationships between the WRU and regions. My final worry, is who wants the jobs on offer, or rather what caliber of person would want the challenge.

I once found myself put onto a committee running an organisation that was, if anything, in a worse state than the WRU. It took three and a half years to move it the way I wanted. There was a swirling mess of political intrigue and I had no idea who any potential allies might be or who I could trust. But when I made a move, there were enough allies to drive the change through and more than a decade later the organisation is thriving. I stepped down when the new structure came into existance and did nothing for the organisation for half a dozen years although I do now serve it in a technical capacity. I'm probably still "damaged goods" in terms being on the board amongst quite a large section of the membership.

I'll keep an open mind.

ladram wrote: it's done it's gone let's look at the future.

The contract with the pro-clubs for funding is not yet signed though. Hoping it will be this week.