The WRU and Ospreys plan is changing as the search for a new seat begins

Your questions are answered in Welsh rugby’s off-field soap opera

Following last Friday’s shocking announcement that Welsh Rugby Union chairman Richard Collier-Keywood will step down at the end of his term in July fans have been left with more questions than answers.

So what? Does the removal of Collier-Keywood mean the WRU will abandon its efforts to cut one of Wales’ four professional clubs? Will the next EGM go ahead?

And are the Ospreys now safe after last week’s announcement that a redevelopment of St Helen’s was taking place?

Rugby Journalist Steffan Thomas it answers important questions. You can read the inside story on Collier-Keywood’s firing here.

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Is the WRU planning to drop to three leagues?

As it stands yes.

The WRU board voted unanimously to reduce the number of professional teams from four to three, with CEO Abi Tierney pinning his colors on the track.

The union says there is not enough money to put the necessary money into the road and keep the four competition teams, although high numbers from outside the WRU believe that they can get money by cutting back in other areas.

But WalesOnline understands the WRU is already around £7m away from its budget for this financial year.

However, a new independent chair may bring a different feeling and may want to go down in a different way than the original design.

If so, it will be up to the new chairman to persuade the board of directors to change course and vote again. Remember that it is the WRU board that will choose the new chair first.

It is also worth noting that the WRU going down to three sides is very dependent on the URC finding another place, which means that Wales will have four professional teams for at least one season, if not two, as things stand.

Are Ospreys safe now?

No, but they are in a much stronger position than they were in the past.

A few weeks ago Swansea Council released the minutes of a meeting between its leader Rob Stewart, WRU CEO Abi Tierney and Ospreys CEO Lance Bradley which clearly show that if Y11 buys Cardiff, the Ospreys would cease to exist as a professional men’s rugby club.

According to the minutes, Ospreys CEO Bradley said the club was “losing £2.5m a year” and this situation is getting worse with increased costs and reduced income.

“Therefore it had no stable future and there was no path to it,” read the minutes.

But since then the Council of Swansea has announced that the restoration of St Helen will continue as planned, but unlike the original plan most of the funds will come from the Ospreys.

It’s obviously a complicated picture in that area. The narrative has been one of a club struggling to survive against foreign powers, but it is the club’s owners who caused this uncertainty by buying Cardiff and remaining silent on their plans ever since.

It seems important now that former Ospreys chairman Rob Davies has returned to the fold in some form in recent weeks and seems very determined to secure the future of the area, he will reassure supporters, amid the silence from Y11.

The fact that they now have their own site could strengthen the Ospreys’ position if the western license goes out to tender.

With only one license in the west under the current plan, it pits the Ospreys against the Scarlets, and that battle may be decided by the financial managers with the deepest pockets and the most determined.

EGM

The EGM is still scheduled to take place at 6pm on Monday 13 April, at the Principality Stadium, with the main motion being a vote of no confidence in Collier-Keywood as WRU director.

Given that Collier-Keywood will be leaving the union in July, this has taken the trouble out of the EGM, of course.

WalesOnline understands that the Central Glamorgan Rugby Union is meeting on Wednesday to discuss whether or not the EGM should go ahead.

Although no final decision has been made there is a reasonable possibility that it will not go ahead.

But if the WRU board does not deviate from its plans, there is nothing to prevent an EGM being called at a later date.

However, Collier-Keywood is still in place for the next three months now, when one of the proposals put forward was to remove council members from the WRU board and call an election within 14 days. There may be a desire to do so, so the EGM can go ahead. A massive staff change on the board could shake things up if some new faces with a fresh perspective are signed before the summer.

Who will be the next WRU chairman?

Collier-Keywood is still in place until July so the WRU board has time on its side, but will want to start the recruitment process as soon as possible.

The chair is no longer elected by member groups, and Collier-Keywood was the first to be appointed by the board itself.

The WRU Board will establish a Nominations Committee to select candidates. You can see a list of basic options here.

It wouldn’t be a surprise if the Collier-Keywood spot was already on the board with reliable players in Alison Thorne, Jennifer Mathias and Andrew Williams should they wish to take it.

Outside the current board there is support for Wales First Minister Carwyn Jones, Dragons owner David Buttress, Hayley Parsons and Aviva CEO Amanda Blanc, while new names will no doubt emerge in the next few months.

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