Individual Regional Funding

 

A change to the funding model is essential as long as it incentivises developing players for Wales.

 

Maybe the Dragons should start properly developing their young players then rather than signing journeymen and trying to poach the best academy graduates produced by the other three regions every summer.

Remember that the Dragons are already half-owned by the WRU, and it would therefore be in their interests to see them succeed.

 

Apart from maybe 3 seasons when Tony Brown funded Newport, Gwent rugby has been dire for the last 30 years.

It has consistently failed to be competative and, since 2003, Dragons have been the real under -achievers in europe. (The other 3 not being brilliant either). That does not look like changing this season.

 

There is a real problem in Gwent. I see no sign of it being addressed at all.

 

 

We will also suffer years when the Academy doesn't turn out many stars. However much we can improve players with natural talent we have no God-given right to start off with the most talented youngsters, especially as we have a much lower population of registered rugby players in our region than the others. We should certainly try to equalize these numbers by changing the region boundaries, but I would be against a system which will make the less successful regions weaker, and ultimately kill one of them off.

 

No-one's rich. We're all on the bones of our arses, living hand to mouth.

 

Every region is losing money hand over fist and currently the regions producing players for Wales are effectively penalised.

 

Gwent isn't under populated clubs-wise or registered players-wise. If they get their house in order they won't be penalised by this funding review.

 

Doing nothing means that all the regions will have to lose their top Wales stars to break even. Or we can be sensible and financially reward those that do produce these players so we can keep them in Welsh rugby.