WRU

salmidach wrote: I think welsh fans have to realise that the regions will never be competitive whilst under the yoke of the WRU. I'd love to go back to only welsh clubs playing each other. I have no love for the URC or any of the other teams playing in it.  European rugby has lost it's appeal after cutting the number of group games to 4... rugby is going to poo...

But just Welsh clubs playing each other would be the end of professional rugby in Wales. We’d have to go semi pro or amateur 

I do understand the pessimism surrounding Welsh rugby but, for me, I am an eternal optimist. We have quality players often despite the WRU; we have a stadium - the Principality, which is the envy of many. What we desperately need is a governance structure fit for the professional era. I cannot ever see that happening under the leadership of Mr Butcher & Steve Phillips. I hope they prove me wrong but bigger basket cases than Welsh rugby have been transformed by the right people with the right attitude. 

GPR - Rochester wrote: What we desperately need is a governance structure fit for the professional era. I cannot ever see that happening under the leadership of Mr Butcher & Steve Phillips. I hope they prove me wrong but bigger basket cases than Welsh rugby have been transformed by the right people with the right attitude.

We've had the right people and the right attitude - and once they mentioned a change in governance, separating the pro and amateur game - they were voted out by the clubs.

Phillips and Butcher may be awful, out of their depth, and dragging the game back, but I'm afraid the real blockage to success are the people running the community clubs. They will not let the pro teams be in control of their own destiny. Shame on them.

KID A wrote: RR1972 wrote: The weu want to own all the regions and centrally contract all the best players to foxus on team wakes and it’s success No they don't. They can't even afford to fund the one they own properly. What they want is to keep the 4 pro clubs' heads just above water, so they hang on by a thread, but don't thrive - paying as little as possible to the 4 regions as they can. That way they can keep taking the players whenever they need them but don't have to pay proper market rates for player release - citing our poor performance as a result. If they wanted us to thrive, we would have seen that CVC money.

As ever, two spot on Kid A posts 🎯

KID A wrote: GPR - Rochester wrote: What we desperately need is a governance structure fit for the professional era. I cannot ever see that happening under the leadership of Mr Butcher & Steve Phillips. I hope they prove me wrong but bigger basket cases than Welsh rugby have been transformed by the right people with the right attitude.  We've had the right people and the right attitude - and once they mentioned a change in governance, separating the pro and amateur game - they were voted out by the clubs. Phillips and Butcher may be awful, out of their depth, and dragging the game back, but I'm afraid the real blockage to success are the people running the community clubs. They will not let the pro teams be in control of their own destiny. Shame on them.

 didn’t realise was the community clubs who set up the urc fixtire list? Or who signed a deal with low guranteed inciime Or who play test match rugby outside the test window or in cardiffs case ailenate half of their potential fan base or whp keep appointing hopeless coaches who are miles out of their depth. I’m all for splitting the pro and grass roots game but to put all the blame for pro rugbys ills on then is nonsense tbh. A strong grass roots gane underpins a strong pro game it doesn’t undermine it. Where do you think the next group of pro and test players start to learn the game?

Edited by RR1972 - 11 August 2022 at 7:43pm

Ok all these scarlet players rock up to the scarletsc academy with out ever  having played for any junior clubs,the urc holds the pro game back untill we get a b and i lge we will always struggle

Edited by RR1972 - 11 August 2022 at 10:26pm

A strong test team needs a strong pro game a strong pro game needs a strong grass roots game.  The more kids we have playing age group and schools rugby the more chance we have of getting better players for the regions and then for wales. Long term we need to look at getting better coaching better facilities better s and c for the youngsters for the  future for welsh rugby. Short tern givving the regions more money to make us more competive will help. But long term more funding for age and schools rugby is key. I don’t want money for grass roots to be spent on playwrs for the first team to win trophys for these clubs, it’s to run age group and youth sides  As i said i’m happy to see the pro game run seperately but let’s not forget the fact plenty of pro welsh rugby clubs babkrupted themselves paying money they didn’t have in the past

Edited by RR1972 - 11 August 2022 at 11:23pm

Our schools rugby system is dreadful though, less schools play, less kids play, there are less fixtures, less qualified coaches and s and c coaching is non existant.  Those schools you point out are generally fee paying , the kids there are boarders and they have top coaches there . Wales schools have none of that and the wru need to invest in them and age group