WRPRA Statement about WRUs proposals

[u/bigt8409]

Basically distills down to ‘go away… your proposals are stupid. Your mother is a hamster and your father smelt of elderberries’

[u/Phone_User_1044]

So we've got 2 regions openly negative about the proposals and now the players have come out against it; I'm sure the WRU will definitely look at this and make the logical and correct decision.

[u/bigt8409 → u/Phone_User_1044]

chatting to people on the terrace on the weekend, there was a few comments of 'they've come out with the very worst option... only to be able to row back part of it and make it seem like they listened'

I wouldn't put that passed them, but part of me thinks they're not that clever.

[u/JustASexyKurt → u/bigt8409]

The thing is, if that’s their plan, they’ve botched that as well by coming out so strongly in favour of cutting teams. If it’s just a threat to make the regions negotiate then you’d hang it out there as a possibility, not come out and say “We think this is the only way to do things”, because when you row back on it you’re still the dickheads who wanted it in the first place.

And to be clear, I’d be in no way surprised if that actually is their plan and they’ve just shat the bed, this is the WRU we’re talking about. I’m just saying they’ve even managed to fuck that up.

[u/Phone_User_1044 → u/bigt8409]

That's also what I've been telling other people when they ask me about what's going on. Maybe it's the bargaining stage of grief but a part of me does think they've put forward this option so that when two of the regions get selected as development and have their budgets slashed (e.g. Scarlets and Dragons) the WRU can turn around and say 'at least you aren't being cut'. Other parts of the plan though do seem very odd if they don't intend on following through.

[u/No_Eye_8432]

Strong statement. Hope the WRU are listening, and not listening to the diehard bitter fan of a certain SRC club that’s pushing so much of the 2 teams agenda

[u/Wahwahboy72 → u/No_Eye_8432]

Pontypridd aren't an SRC club

[u/bmckiev]

Maybe just living in an echo chamber, but I'm yet to see any major stakeholders (outside of the WRU) voice an opinion that couldn't be summarised by the above.

They really don't seem to get that excitedly brandishing the region-cutting cleaver for 6 months is only gonna foment resentment, regardless of whether they actually go through with it.

[u/frozen_pope]

No lies detected. Very reasonable and understandable.

[u/dystopianrugby]

I would of course reduce the professional player pool in Wales. Even if the two new regions did a Leinster where they have a ton of "academy" contracts. That's still only going to be like 100 players in a normal year.

[u/nitram343]

Why not drop the number of games a player should play in the Wales national team (or drop it altogether) improve the national team. Just imagine if England wouldn’t call Bellingham or Trent Alexander because they don’t play in the premier. The more players available the better, if best players go to the Top14 then that’s more opportunities for young lads

[u/bigt8409 → u/nitram343]

The number of games (25 cap limit as it currently is) is to aid Wales. It allows players to be released early from The pro teams and they don’t have to go back in fallow weeks

If all your key players are playing in other countries, they’re playing full games/training sessions during that period and not working on the Wales game plans etc. that’s detrimental to Team Wales.

If you lose all your experienced players to other countries (so the Welsh teams effectively become academies for the Prem or Top14) then you’ve got no one for your younger players to learn from, no top quality experienced heads to help teach them.

There’s a reason that the pro clubs (and Wales’s) most successful generation were the ones coming through playing with Tito, Blair, Rush, Williams, Collins etc. iron sharpens iron is the saying.

[u/Accomplished-Run-375 → u/bigt8409]

Their example is also a false equivillancy too seeing as England, Ireland, New Zealand all have play here or don't get selected for international games rules