‘Don’t fight each other. Not yet’: A fan’s view on the WRU and the west Wales licence

By Rob Thomas – Fan’s View

Rob Thomas is a rugby supporter and hospital director. He last wrote for Swansea Bay News in February, warning that Welsh rugby could not “shrink its way to greatness”. The views here are his own.

I am deeply troubled by the WRU’s handling of the restructuring of professional rugby in Wales.

There may be a legitimate financial argument that Wales can no longer sustain four professional teams. I may not like that conclusion, but it deserves to be heard.

My concern is the process.

If Welsh rugby is moving to three professional licences, why do Cardiff and Dragons appear effectively protected while Scarlets and Ospreys are required to fight each other for the remaining western licence?

If I were Scarlets and Ospreys, my first response would be simple: don’t fight each other. Not yet.

Stand together and challenge the process first.

Demand transparency. What were the criteria? What financial and rugby modelling was undertaken? Why was geography determined this way? What alternatives were considered? When were the key decisions made? Was the process genuinely open to different outcomes?

Then test every available legal avenue.

PRA25 needs forensic examination. What commitments and protections were given to the four professional clubs?

But go wider.

The WRU exercises enormous influence over professional rugby, including funding, structures, pathways and access to competition. That makes the competition law question worth serious examination. Were decisions affecting access to professional rugby objectively justified, proportionate and applied consistently?

Contractual rights, competition law, governance and procedural fairness should all be examined by specialist lawyers.

The strongest argument may not be that the WRU cannot reduce Wales from four teams to three.

It may be much simpler:

If three licences are available, why aren’t all four existing professional clubs competing for them against transparent, objective and consistently applied criteria?

Scarlets and Ospreys also have considerable influence beyond the courtroom. Councils, MPs, MSs, sponsors, businesses, supporters and former players across west Wales should be asking the same questions.

This isn’t simply about preserving four teams regardless of economics.

It is about fair process, transparency and good governance.

The WRU has invited Scarlets and Ospreys to fight each other for survival.

I think they should do something different.

Challenge the process together first.

Author

Kit Peters

Kit Peters is a journalist and the editor of Swansea Bay News, covering Swansea, Neath Port Talbot and Carmarthenshire since 2020.