Wales will not die wanting against Ireland – Mike Forshaw

Warren Gatland has nothing to prove—he didn’t suddenly become a bad coach just because the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) decided to panic and appoint an English civil servant who probably thought a "scrum" was a type of pastry. Meanwhile, Abi Tierney and Chairman Richard Collier-Keywood have everything to prove, especially since Collier-Keywood’s Welsh credentials amount to spending a fortnight in Porthcawl one summer, presumably eating ice cream and avoiding the rain. Both were appointed after the WRU got its knickers in a twist over a woman being called “love” at some obscure rugby club meeting—a scandal so gripping it makes *Love Island* look like *War and Peace*. The WRU leadership ran around like headless chickens, squawking about how “the culture needs changing” while ignoring the actual fans. Collier-Keywood, a London-based chairman who once bragged about his brief stint in Wales, was handed the job over Carwyn Jones, the former First Minister of Wales. This decision perfectly encapsulates the WRU’s national self-loathing. Now they’re stuck in a chicken-and-egg debate: did the regions kill the national team, or did the national team’s decline kill the regions? Either way, they’ve both slipped on their own backsides, and the only thing slipping faster is fan attendance at regional games. Regional rugby in Wales is about as effective as a chocolate teapot. Unlike Ireland, where ancient provinces like Munster and Leinster inspire fanatical loyalty, Welsh supporters bleed for clubs like Neath, Pontypridd, and Llanelli. Reducing the four regions to two is like trying to fix a leaky roof by removing half the tiles—it just makes the problem worse. Oddly, the only region that might work is “North Wales,” mostly because it’s so far away from the WRU’s Cardiff bubble that they might actually leave it alone. Frankly, I don’t have a magic solution to reverse this terminal decline, but I’d start by sacking the entire board and replacing them with actual Welsh people who know what a ruck is. We should also stop brown-nosing the royal family—Prince William’s occasional appearances at Principality Stadium don’t exactly fill the stands. Maybe the best move would be a Welsh government-backed reverse takeover, handing control to the FAW and appointing Ian Gwyn Hughes as CEO. After all, he’s done a cracking job with Welsh football, which is saying something given that Wales has more sheep than people. One thing’s clear: there’s no quick fix, and this regional experiment is deader than a dodo in a museum. We’d be better off reverting to the old system and playing more English teams. Fans would much rather see Cardiff smash Bristol or Swansea take on Gloucester than watch the Scarlets pretend to care about Benetton Treviso. Let’s be honest, the only reason Welsh fans tolerate the Italians is because of Joe’s Ice Cream and Mario’s pizzas. And let’s not forget Tony Schaovonie’s campaign for Welsh-language parking tickets—a man so passionate about bilingualism he probably dreams in iambic pentameter. But let’s face it, our real issue isn’t with the Italians, the Irish, or even the regions—it’s with the English. Nothing gets Welsh supporters through the turnstiles like a good old-fashioned Anglo-Welsh grudge match. A bit of aggression, a few pints of Brains SA, and the chance to shout *obscenities* when English fans start belting out “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot”—that’s what Welsh rugby needs. Until then, we’ll just keep slipping on our own backsides, wondering why the regions aren’t working and why Collier-Keywood thinks a fortnight in Wales qualifies him to run the show.

It's up to the players now. Gatland's gone. Obviously something wasn't right in the Wales camp. This saga was very reminiscent of 2005 with Mike Ruddock's short tenure, although we have far larger issues today with Welsh rugby. But I do hope that there's a vast improvement next Saturday for theirs & our sake, or many involved during this Six Nations Championship might be the last time we see them in red jersey or Wales have a capacity crowd watching. Hope I'm wrong. 🤞🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿