The Welsh Rugby Union has admitted it won’t have resolved whether or not to cut the number of Wales’ professional club sides from four to two before the start of the national side’s November Tests, raising the likelihood of a significant distraction for new head coach Steve Tandy.
In August, WRU bosses put forward a number of revolutionary changes to the country’s national game on the back of poor performance with a halving of its men’s domestic teams the headline act.
Since then, director of rugby Dave Reddin has led a consultation period which has now finished and included 31 separate meetings with groups that have included current and ex-players, coaches, club bosses, fan groups and even politicians.
As things stand, the futures of sides the Dragons, Cardiff – who are owned by the WRU – Ospreys and Scarlets remain uncertain.
Wales begin their November campaign – their first under Tandy’s guidance – against Argentina on November 9.
Wales’ director of rugby Dave Reddin (right) alongside new head coach Steve Tandy (centre)
Tandy (right) is preparing for his first campaign against a backdrop of club uncertainty
It looks unlikely the WRU board will have officially ratified any decision before then.
Wales’ national side has become used to operating in tandem with rugby politics and that looks set to continue. It is a far from ideal scenario for Tandy and his squad.
‘I speak to Steve most days and he’s fully involved,’ Reddin said.
‘The pressure is not really about cleaning it (the proposal to cut teams) up for Steve.
‘Whatever the decision is going to be, there’s going to be a transition period that’s going to outlast the autumn.
‘The decision is about giving the game as much clarity as possible.’
The Newport-based Dragons and the Welsh Rugby Players Association have both been highly critical of the WRU’s two-team proposal and that has been a common theme through the consultation process.
Reddin insisted the options of going to two or three teams or even maintaining the status quo of the existing four are all options that remain on the table.
However, there is also a common understanding in Welsh rugby the current status quo is not working and cannot be maintained.
Daily Mail Sport understands there is now very little chance of two being the future direction of travel based on the strength of the negative consultation feedback.
The WRU’s next board meeting is on October 8, where the consultation feedback will be discussed in detail.
The process is far from straight forward and unlikely to be swift.
An official WRU board ratification looks unlikely before Wales play Argentina.
‘The board needs to make a decision to resolve the uncertainty,’ Reddin admitted.
Wales is considering cutting the number of its four professional clubs from four to two
Wales captain Jac Morgan has said if his current club the Ospreys is disbanded, he will leave Welsh rugby altogether.
Reddin described the comments of Morgan – Wales’ only Test Lion in Australia this summer – as ‘concerning.’
Reddin added: ‘The ideal way to proceed would be through consensus.’
Asked if Welsh rugby was anywhere close to such a position, he responded: ‘We’re still someway away. We’re not going to keep everybody happy.
‘It would be easy to say the players don’t like it, so we can’t do it. Respectfully, the players are a massively important voice. But they’re not a uniform voice.’
Intriguingly, Reddin hinted changes to the number of Welsh teams could be made not just immediately, but over an even longer period of time.
The four current sides are battling for survival on the assumption that if they are cut, they would never return. Hence the strong feelings.
Reddin gave off an indication that may well not be the case.
‘I think there’s a piece in there about profiling of changes. What we might do in the initial phase might look different in five years.’ he said.
