A great showcase…now let us unite on all fronts
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WALES AND LIONS LEGEND SHANE WILLIAMS
I ENJOYED some great days out at the Principality Stadium, but among the most special was playing for my village club Amman United in the Bowl Final in 2017. It might have been a few rungs down the playing ladder from a Grand Slam clash with the French, or an Autumn Series dust up with the All Blacks, but the desire in the dressing room and fervour on the field was just the same.
It was a fantastic way for me to end my playing career, especially as I scored a try and we won, but the most important thing to me was that I was able to play with my brother and keep a commitment I made to the club at which I started my career that I would end it with them.
Yesterday we saw the regions take centre stage at the home of Welsh rugby with the derby games on Judgement Day, which is the pinnacle of the professional game in Wales, while today it is the turn of the stars of the community game to enjoy the limelight.
The three finals – Nant Conwy v Newbridge, Pontypool v Ystrad Rhondda and Newport v Cardiff – will be on the agenda in what it is the biggest of the nine days of community action promoted by the WRU as part of their innovative ‘Road to Principality' series.
The fact there will be 700 fans packed into buses to bring fans from Newbridge to the Welsh capital for the Division 1 final tells its own story.
In the old amateur days of rugby, Newbridge were one of the selfstyled ‘first-class' clubs producing Welsh internationals such as Clive Davis, Paul Turner and Andrew Gibbs. They had fixtures against national touring teams, staged Welsh trial matches and reached the semi-finals of the main WRU Challenge Cup.
But there was always something missing from their make-up as a rugby club, like so many of those ‘first-class' teams. They were a one-team club with little or nothing below the first-team squad to support them either on or off the field. Nowadays, they have a thriving mini and junior section and probably do a better job for the game as a whole than they ever did in the past. The fact they are unbeaten in 17 league games and three cup ties should make them favourites today, but Nant Conwy are also unbeaten all season. No wonder the fans are turning up in their bus loads!
Another of the great names of Welsh rugby will be appearing in the Championship Cup final, in Pontypool. They play Ystrad Rhondda and are backed by an unbeaten run of 21 games this season as they continue their drive for a league and cup double – and promotion to the Premiership at last.
They have fought to keep the game alive at Pontypool Park and, against the odds, have maintained high standards. This season alone they have produced two front row players for the Wales U20 team and serve their rugby rich community with distinction.
The showpiece final will be the battle between Newport and Cardiff for the WRU Challenge Cup. There is no bigger fixture in Welsh, or probably British, club rugby than a meeting between the Black & Ambers and Blue & Blacks. What a game that promises to be.
But while the community game is relishing the chance to play on one of the biggest rugby stages in the world, it is also struggling – for numbers, volunteers and cash. There are 140 clubs who have been deducted points for not fulfilling fixtures in their various leagues, the season has had to be extended twice because of the backlog in fixtures and everyone is getting a bit weary as May approaches.
Of all the things the summer needs to bring, a closer alignment, and far less suspicion, between the community and professional sectors of the game is top of the list. Never mind more money to give to the regions, what about more support for the mini and junior sections of the clubs that start the future international on their journey to fame and fortune at the top end of the game.
Greater attention to detail in the amount of rugby played at schools, both primary and secondary, is another key review in the off season, as is an overhaul of the pathway. Wales have been hammered at Under 20, U19 and U18 level this season and that is the thin end of the wedge as far as I'm concerned. We need to concentrate more effort on the bridge between schools and professional rugby and find a proper place for the aspiring youngsters to learn their trade.
We've got plenty of gym monkeys, but not enough outsidehalves or centres. There are loads of youngsters being encouraged to get bigger and stronger, but too many simply aren't playing enough rugby in my opinion.
So many of the problems in Welsh rugby can be solved by more open and honest discussion, proper disclosure and a bit more mutual respect. Great collaboration and understanding could make a huge difference. To quote Sir Winston Churchill, if indeed this is actually what he said: ‘More jaw, jaw and less war, war.”
So, after two greats days that will have showcased all that is good in Welsh rugby at professional and community levels, wouldn't it be great if the two sides came closer together for the good of the game as a whole. There is so much common ground, as Malclom Wall, the independent chair of the Professional Game Board, told the clubs on the recent WRU Roadshow that preceded the EGM.
The clubs spoke with one voice on that occasion, overwhelmingly backing the proposals to create an independent chair and agreeing to raising the number of women on the board. Now we need a greater share of unity on all fronts to help improve the game at all levels.
