Some hope for 2017

I'm going to write a list, of sorts, of some hopes / dreams / never will come trues for professional rugby in Wales in 2017 and beyond. There are major issues within the game, at all levels, so here are some ideas for going some way to curing them: Split The Pro & Community Games...

The Stupidity of National Dual Contracts

Wales Online today have released a story that notes the WRU are only willing to offer £250,000 per annum to Liam Williams, as part of a National Dual Contract. Of course, the article doesn't go on to note whether that sum is just what the WRU will pay or the total of the annual salary....

A step backwards

  Martyn Phillips has given Wales Online a pretty in depth article regarding the plans for rugby in Wales up until the 2019 Rugby World Cup and, unfortunately, it contains the same serious flaws and errors that his predecessors have made. There are three major mistakes made: 1) the contract extensions to Howley and McBryde,...

The cost of Professional Rugby

This week saw the publication of the Annual Accounts of 'Scarlets Regional Ltd', the company that owns and runs the Scarlets. The clue is in the title. The headline figures for the business was that its turnover (i.e. income) was £8,976,506 but it still spent £987,615 more than it earned. That's right, the cost of...

The Mentality of the Voluntarily Disenfranchised

Mr Geraint Powell, a man famed for holding 'interesting' views on the set up of Welsh rugby and for using multiple logins and aliases to publish them, wrote this regarding the set up of a Cardiff Blues Supporters Trust: https://thevietgwent.wordpress.com/2016/03/31/more-east-glamorgan-hybrid-nonsense-a-supporters-trust-for-a-club-that-is-a-region/comment-page-1/#comment-30 Here is my reply (that he is unlikely to publish): "Geraint, when will you realise...

The Fag Packet Reorganisation of Welsh Rugby

As Martyn Phillips continues his tour of Wales, seeking views and opinions of those who love and care for the game at all levels, I though that I’d throw together a reorganisation of the game along basic lines of what I’d like to see. It’s been a challenge to keep this below 2,000 words, so...

It’s a squad game

Much that Danny Wilson does and says is very impressive, so the recent news that there will be fewer contracted players in the seasons to come is well received. Wilson is on the same path that Alec Evans took when he arrived at the time, in that he also recognised there were far too many...

What’s in a Name? Who is Cardiff Blues?

An identity crisis can be caused by many things, not least by forgetting who you are, how you got to where you are and what your name is. Your position can be worsened by giving yourself multiple names, multiple identities and by trying to appease to all of the people all of the time. That...

What’s Happening To The East?

A supporter follows his/her team for many reasons, most of which are intangible but fewer again are sensible, but the tie for many is unbreakable. It is lifelong, through thick and thin but with a huge caveat - as long as the Club followed stays true to the values that first attracted that support. Even if...

Email-gate

Is this genuine? Mr G Davies Chairman The Welsh Rugby Union Limited The Millennium Stadium Westgate Street Cardiff CF10 1NS 17th May 2015 Dear Mr Davies Welsh representation in the British & Irish Cup in the2015/16 Season Let me clarify the position of Pontypridd RFC, its dispute is not with the Governing Body, it is...