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Apparently notice served...

All thought go to Dragons, but with the West Walians aligned and partly responsible there's a small chance they could be merged?

What a **** show, I said on the inception of regionalism this would be the beginning of the end for Welsh rugby, and we'll the WRU have absolutely done their damnnest controversial me right...

3 regions next year 35% fanbase lost (1 set of fans and the dissolusioned others), in 4 years it'll be 2 regions, east and West based in Cardiff and Swansea, who both play in front of 3k people each, who's squads will look pretty much semi pro as half the squads do now
 
Wonder if they actually kill Ospreys and Scarlets and create a new West Wales region, in that case?
 
Wonder if they actually kill Ospreys and Scarlets and create a new West Wales region, in that case?
All that investment ruined? Havnt they just agreed to play at St Helens?

Honestly, at this point, with the WRU love affair with Cardiff (reasonably justified tbh) it could be any of the other 3.

WRU might just wait for a volunteer before last second decision of who looks at them wrong, either way you just know they will do what's worse for welsh rugby long term
 
Reading that Scarlets and Ospreys are on the chopping block.
Dragons will play ball and let WRU treat Cardiff like the golden child

WRU can cripple it's biggest opposition to change by getting rid of 1 of the 2 outliners or merging them.

It will be Scarlets or Ospreys both are what 30 mins from the other.
 
Results wise, Dragons would be the obvious choice, but financially they have worked hard to get themselves into a good position. They own Rodney Parade, are opperaring without debt (if we ignore the covid loan that the WRU will take over). With another couple of million of funding (and a bunch of players from the cut region) you'd hope to think they would become competitive!

I think it'll be the Ospreys. Poorly attended, in a financial mess (has been for years), don't even have a stadium atm. It's a shame as they have one of the strongest playing squads and have historically been the strongest region!

Ospreys/scarlets merger, playing at Parc y Scarlets makes the most sense, BUT will any Ospreys fans make the trip over the Loughor? Unlikely as they hate each other!
 
Results wise, Dragons would be the obvious choice, but financially they have worked hard to get themselves into a good position. They own Rodney Parade, are opperaring without debt (if we ignore the covid loan that the WRU will take over). With another couple of million of funding (and a bunch of players from the cut region) you'd hope to think they would become competitive!

I think it'll be the Ospreys. Poorly attended, in a financial mess (has been for years), don't even have a stadium atm. It's a shame as they have one of the strongest playing squads and have historically been the strongest region!

Ospreys/scarlets merger, playing at Parc y Scarlets makes the most sense, BUT will any Ospreys fans make the trip over the Loughor? Unlikely as they hate each other!

Yeah this generation of supporters hate each other but I guess from a future POV if Scarlets absorb some of the key Ospreys players and become more competitive if success follows it younger generation of fans will prob start to make the trip. The whole Ospreys thing in general seemed a mess merging Neath and Swansea together.
 
Yeah this generation of supporters hate each other but I guess from a future POV if Scarlets absorb some of the key Ospreys players and become more competitive if success follows it younger generation of fans will prob start to make the trip. The whole Ospreys thing in general seemed a mess merging Neath and Swansea together.
2 points to this,

I don't think any fans hate each other, that would suggest rivalries, and we'll from being a season ticket holder and travelling to all 4 games each year, most fans are aligned against the WRU, there are very few die hards left in Wales today. It's mostly school kids, some families, and a small % of old heads having a few beers and socialising. So although they don't hate each other, there will be 0 interest in following a different team a few miles down the road.

Of the 30 to 40 Cardiff fans I sit by regularly, at least half are on the verge of not bothering renewing their tickets every year, and in the last 3 years we've lost about half of the regulars. If they were asked to travel to Rodney, 16 mins on the train I'm betting 0 would bother, same way with Ospreys, Scarlets or Dragons fans.

Secondly, the 'combine the squads, achieve success, create a new fanbase' was the basis of 2003. Ospreys actually had a galacticos squad, and were pretty successful, their best being what 2007? Squad full of stars, Wales win the grand slam 2008 full of Ospreys, yet they only managed to average less than 9k that season, with a steady decline since then.

I mean combining squads is super short term, if there is a 99% guarentee that within 6/7 seasons those players will be replaced with much lesser quality graduates through an under funded and hamstrung developmental pathway.

Let's say Scarlets Ospreys combine, and best case scenario happens, an Ospreys pack and Scarlets back line gels, both fan bases enjoy semi finals and qualifications to champions cup, they average 10k per week first 2 seasons, before stars leave for massive French contracts, are replaced with lesser quality players, they panic and start to move around the region, using 3 stadiums, which ultimately make them homeless, fans drop off and money dries up before bang, it's 2033, Wales has 1 lion selected and West Wales are playing in front of 5k finishing 12th in the URC.

Worst case scenario, they combine, whichever stadium they decide on, the other regional fans say nope, crowds don't increase, the Combined squads are still not competitive, and all we hear from the WRU is 'judge it in 10 years' and then 'judge it in 5 more years', before they plough through 3 more CEO's all hired dependant on what controversy is going on that year, and welsh rugby collapses in on itself and the pro game vanishes from Wales.
 
I get that argument, but the stark reality is the current 4 regions aren't working. I think consolidading to 3 will be the short term shot in the arm needed, freeing up money and players to make 3 competitive sides.

Unlike when regionalism was introduced and when Celctic Warriors went under, long term this needs to be backed up by a long term strategy of growth. For me this would be by strengthening SRC - there will be surplus players from the consolidation of regions, so they need to be kept in Wales in the SRC if possible - and a much longer term plan of developing RGC into a 4th region (in a slow and sustainable way).
 
The obvious choice would be to axe the Dragons, but Gwent is actually a massive rugby area, judging by the sheer number of clubs in the region still. (And both finalists in the SRC this year were from Gwent). Therefore, while axing one of the West Wales teams is more likely, it would be insulting given their relative successes compared to Cardiff and especially Dragons. (I do hope this won't distract the Scarlets from trying to win at Leinster in two weeks' time).
 
I feel it might be the O's

They didn't sign a agreement with the WRU

I feel the WRU will try to get to 2 regions and then merged into a league with England
Yes.
There are currently 2 'City Regions' in Wales, with big populations, Swansea Bay and Capital Cardiff.
Placing a team in each and playing in Premiership would enable better funding for each, but crucially more funding for SRC to provide a pathway for fringe and emerging talent.
They would take over the playing squads from most of the current pro clubs.
The 2 teams could have a 'squad' of 35, but be able to pick reserves from any SRC club, for injuries, to keep the 35 player squad.
This is how Baseball works in USA, and a bit like how SRP teams in NZ work.
 

Apparently it's not done and dusted, the idea of part funding 2 regions and over funding 2 is still on the table.

As I said, the WRU will say nothing, and then Tierney will wake up one day after 3 bottles of red, and see the headlines that she axed a region on twitter at 00.45, and have to play it out like she knows what she's doing...
 
The obvious choice would be to axe the Dragons, but Gwent is actually a massive rugby area, judging by the sheer number of clubs in the region still. (And both finalists in the SRC this year were from Gwent). Therefore, while axing one of the West Wales teams is more likely, it would be insulting given their relative successes compared to Cardiff and especially Dragons. (I do hope this won't distract the Scarlets from trying to win at Leinster in two weeks' time).
You slay me hahaha
 
The obvious choice would be to axe the Dragons, but Gwent is actually a massive rugby area, judging by the sheer number of clubs in the region still. (And both finalists in the SRC this year were from Gwent). Therefore, while axing one of the West Wales teams is more likely, it would be insulting given their relative successes compared to Cardiff and especially Dragons. (I do hope this won't distract the Scarlets from trying to win at Leinster in two weeks' time).
It's about more than past successes. If it were the ospreys would go because I'm pretty sure the other three of those teams have beaten NZ ;)
 

Apparently it's not done and dusted, the idea of part funding 2 regions and over funding 2 is still on the table.

As I said, the WRU will say nothing, and then Tierney will wake up one day after 3 bottles of red, and see the headlines that she axed a region on twitter at 00.45, and have to play it out like she knows what she's doing...
I think a 2+2 funding model would be a better way forward. It would also allow a simple route back to either a 3+1 or four fully funded regions if rugby in Wales can be lifted off the canvas in the future. Which 2 would be the question.

Imo Cardiff has to be one. I know their recent financial issues have cauaed many fans of the others to question why they should be given that right, but given they're the capital region, and by far the best supported, it just makes commercial sense.

Then who's the other. Dragons have signed the new RPA, so it may be as simple as that. But rewarding consistent failure isn't right, and it creates an east-west inbalance.

So for me the other well funded side would need to be one of Ospreys or Scarlets. Flip a coin there. One is in a bit of limbo as they transition to a new stadium, the other maybe doesn't have as high a potential ceiling due to being based in a small town, rarher than a city.
 
Looking it up, Swansea and Illanelli are only a 22 minute drive apart. So I guess my question is, would a West Wales feanchise combining both the Ospreya abd Illanelli be viable?

This way Wales could have three fully funded franchises. It would be a tough pill to swallow but it certainly appears Wales struggles to maintain 3 franchises.

I'm saying this as an Australian Rugby fan who has seen our SRP teams go from 5 to 4.
 

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