Welsh rugby ‘optimal solution’ to be unveiled

Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) chief executive Abi Tierney says the governing body will produce their “optimal solution” in the next couple of weeks to transform the failing game in Wales.

The WRU will outline their plans with the headline act the possibility of cutting from the current four regions – Dragons, Cardiff, Ospreys and Scarlets – down to three or two teams.

Tierney says the next couple of weeks are critical and represents a “once-in-a-generation chance to put Welsh rugby on a sustainable footing and ensure it doesn’t find itself in this position again”.

The WRU executive will present its findings to the board in a document with new director of rugby and elite performance Dave Reddin described as the key author.

Tierney has defended the decision to provide their preferred option before consultation with critics stating it is a ‘fait accompli’.

“We want to consult on an option rather than just go out there with everybody having different views,” said Tierney.

“We are following best practice by going out with a preferred solution. We’re paid to make decisions, so it’s important we take the opportunity of a leadership position on this.”

Tierney says there will be time for collaboration and change.

“While we’re saying it’s what we think is the optimal solution, we haven’t made a final decision,” she said.

“We’re up to being challenged and for something different to emerge and we’ll have six weeks where we listen and engage.

“You explain why it’s your preferred solution and people have a chance to challenge and question and come up with maybe how you amend it.

“The document’s going to be public so people will be able to see it. So we have not made any decision and I’m going to be listening.

Uncertainty has already created division between opposing sides.

Ospreys have this week had a planning application agreed by Swansea City Council to redevelop St Helen’s, with a view to moving in next year.

Scarlets’ fans groups and local politicians objected to the development in Swansea because they felt it threatened the future of Llanelli’s Parc y Scarlets if there was only one west Wales side.

Tierney says the WRU gave no assurances to the council that Ospreys would exist if they received planning application, and also denied the governing body had chosen Swansea instead of Llanelli as the base for any west Wales side.

Tierney was asked if any sides culled would be named at this stage or in the final decision in October.

“It’s more the number and principles we are going to be consulting on, not where the teams are based or which teams they should be,” said Tierney.

“We do not in that document get into, if it’s a reduction of clubs, then it is this club over that club.

“There’s so many different scenarios in this. One is you do it through consent, so through the consultation process. We have to first of all do that, to see whether we can announce at that point.

“One option is we then go out to tender if we don’t get consent and clubs can’t agree amongst themselves to merge. Scarlets and Ospreys have talked about a merger in the past.

“If we could get consent we will but if we can’t, it will be ‘this is our structure, this is the number of clubs we want and this is the model’.

The latest domestic crisis has emerged after Cardiff went into administration in April and were taken over by the WRU with the governing body looking for new investors.

Tierney accepts there is a perception the WRU owning a region in this process is a problem.

“I’m not involved in any way in Cardiff and we have a separate group managing them,” said Tierney.

“We will shortly be naming an independent chair who will lead their response during this process.”

Tierney accepts it is likely professional rugby will continue in the Welsh capital.

“It’s hard because we didn’t choose for Cardiff to go into administration when it did,” said Tierney.

“For lots of very factual reasons, populations, pathways, number of clubs etc. I said this was one of the reasons we chose to take Cardiff in-house.

Cutting two regions is likely to lead to job cuts and Tierney accepts it is an uncertain time, assuring people they will do the process “fairly, transparently and with compassion”.

Fewer teams could lead to alienating fans of the clubs that are culled.

“Fans are so important to this but it’s not working at the moment,” said Tierney.

“We’ve got to come up with something that wins the hearts and minds of fans back.

“We are already losing fans. Every year the number attending the regional clubs is going down.

“It’s the challenge we are facing so we need to do something different on that. To me [the threat of losing fans], it’s a bit of a red herring question.

“If we do change the club structure – and it’s a big if – what are the brands we want to associate and how do we bring the fans along with us.”

Tierney has dismissed targeting an Anglo-Welsh league stating the United Rugby Championship (URC) “is the focus as the current competition the Welsh sides are playing in”.

“They [URC] are another one we are consulting with because any change to our structure we will need their consent to make that change as quickly as possible,” said Tierney.

Tierney insists change is required with Welsh rugby in dire straits.

The national men’s side have a new head coach in Steve Tandy – who starts his role in September – but had lost a record 18 Tests in a row before victory against Japan in July.

None of the four professional sides qualified for last season’s Champions Cup in a year when the final was staged in Cardiff.

A new strategy was launched in June 2024 where the WRU committed to four equally-funded regions.

The past year has been dogged by yet more failure and in-fighting with the WRU announcing the sides would not be equally funded and they are now contemplating scrapping teams altogether.

“I can understand there’s pros and cons and trade offs to all of this,” said Tierney.

“There’s no perfect solution and we are going to have to have an honest conversation about what we are willing to trade for what outcomes, because what we are doing now isn’t working.

“So, I recognise there’s risks in that but there’s also risks in doing what we are doing.