New to URC, why are the Welsh teams struggling?

[ManxMan]

Hi All, I am new to Rugby Union + the URC. I am a NFL fan, however I am struggling with the time zones and after watching the games for years into the early hours of Monday morning it is killing me, also after watching the rugby World Cup I am hooked. I am from the Isle of Man, so I can basically I can support any team, however following a team I can one day go and watch is appealing. The Welsh provinces make sense. However my question is why are they struggling so much. Rugby Union is the National sport of Wales and with so much history I would expect them to be good year on year. So my question why are they seemingly so poor.

 

[AWJ5GOAT]

Hi All, I am new to Rugby Union + the URC. I am a NFL fan, however I am struggling with the time zones and after watching the games for years into the early hours of Monday morning it is killing me, also after watching the rugby World Cup I am hooked. I am from the Isle of Man, so I can basically I can support any team, however following a team I can one day go and watch is appealing. The Welsh provinces make sense. However my question is why are they struggling so much. Rugby Union is the National sport of Wales and with so much history I would expect them to be good year on year. So my question why are they seemingly so poor.

Yeah unfortunately everything with the regions and the WRU have just been chaos for a while for a whole lot of different reasons (Feel free to fill me in WelshExile and Dullonien )… and I think that to say that the mismanagement have almost been ridiculous could even be said as a bit of an understatement (unfortunately for all us Wales supporters).. Lot of Welsh stars leaving for France and Japan (or are rumoured to be on the move to said countries atm) because of the wages at the regions amongst other things and players plying their trade in Wales are obviously tempted to go overseas for more favorable conditions than what the regions can offer domestically atm

I know I might not have answered the initial question but hey ho I gave it a go

 

[dirty harry]

It's quite simple, once upon a time a man picked up a football and started running with it. At the same time 2 welshmen were punching each other in the face over 1 looking at anothers hill, or sheep or something...

Anyway, when that ball started to change shape and reach the Land of our fathers the 2 welshman picked up the ball, looked longingly in each others eyes, and one (in the finding Nemo seagull voice) said 'mine'. They then punched each other in the face, until 2 Welsh men became 4, then 8, then 16, then 32...

This carried on for a few hundred years until one day one of those men said 'this isnt working, let's try regionalisation'. To which everyone in the room started punching each other in the face. Eventually there were 4 men left, each had a region, but no fans. They then said, who needs fans, we'll focus on kids, the next generation...

Then 10 years later one man asked why the kids werent turning up to matches or buying merch. So everyone started punching each other in the face...

Then Warren arrived, we all gawped, couldnt believe our luck before holding our hands together and wishing for a RWC win... that never came.

So here we are, no fans, no money, no success, no history in the club game, and playing in a 2 hemisphere league noone really cares about...

punching each other in the face!

Hope this history of Welsh club rugby helps

 

[saulan]

So here we are, no fans, no money, no success, no history in the club game, and playing in a 2 hemisphere league no Welshman really cares about...

Fixed that for you. Apart from Wales, the URC has been getting a lot of support. Definitely has picked up club rugby interest in SA after the decline of Super Rugby, while the sense from Ireland and Scotland seems to be increased engagement and interest given the greater level of competitiveness.

 

[Welsh Exile]

If it was viable I would be more than happy to bin off the URC and bring back Neath,Ponty etc etc.

 

[ShropshireAllBlack]

Unlike the Irish provinces, which have an identity and pedigree, the Welsh regions are a recent confection, made in the main by merging local rivals into teams that nobody supports.
The Welsh, like the failing Gallagher Premiership, are competing against the 600lb gorilla that is English club football.
The WRU has become a byword for incompetence. However, in my experience, the community game in Wales is in good shape, and I occasionally play against them, they are always strong, organised and abrasive teams.

 

[dirty harry]

Fixed that for you. Apart from Wales, the URC has been getting a lot of support. Definitely has picked up club rugby interest in SA after the decline of Super Rugby, while the sense from Ireland and Scotland seems to be increased engagement and interest given the greater level of competitiveness.

Very true...

Infact it makes it all the worse that Welsh rugby kept the league alive in the early days, Welsh TV audience was the largest etc...

It's like professionalism and progress always bypasses us lol

 

[dirty harry]

Unlike the Irish provinces, which have an identity and pedigree, the Welsh regions are a recent confection, made in the main by merging local rivals into teams that nobody supports.
The Welsh, like the failing Gallagher Premiership, are competing against the 600lb gorilla that is English club football.
The WRU has become a byword for incompetence. However, in my experience, the community game in Wales is in good shape, and I occasionally play against them, they are always strong, organised and abrasive teams.

The community game is on its knees, kept alive by the exceptional work of key people donating their time and effort.

These are the very same people who regionalisarion has alienated.

But your right, the community game still has a heart beat, so what should the WRU do? Literally turn off the life support by making the game brand as sexist, racist etc, then impliment tackle height laws to stop it being fun.

There is also a study in the works to propose eliminating contact until 18 years old...

RIP rugby in Wales

 

[TRF_stormer2010]

The community game is on its knees, kept alive by the exceptional work of key people donating their time and effort.

These are the very same people who regionalisarion has alienated.

But your right, the community game still has a heart beat, so what should the WRU do? Literally turn off the life support by making the game brand as sexist, racist etc, then impliment tackle height laws to stop it being fun.

There is also a study in the works to propose eliminating contact until 18 years old...

RIP rugby in Wales

I wouldn't know what a viable solution would look like but I can say with certainty that eliminating age grade contact is a sure fire way to have 18+ year olds write themselves off with tackling essentially grown men without any tackle experience.

 

[dirty harry]

I wouldn't know what a viable solution would look like but I can say with certainty that eliminating age grade contact is a sure fire way to have 18+ year olds write themselves off with tackling essentially grown men without any tackle experience.

It's crazy. Theres always been a Scottish professor, Mary someone who has ties to Westminster who has promoted non contact until 18, but shes mostly been laughed at...

Step in the WRU.

I'm sure the WRU are the best promoter of football in Wales, football participation has outgrown rugby in Wales, and the WRUs response to it has been to make rugby less fun!

 

[Tooting Carmen]

Mismanagement and underinvestment.