LONG READ Steve Tandy seeks calmer waters amidst backdrop of uncertainty

Robbie Savage once recalled how his new yellow Ferrari hissed and steamed to a halt on the M42, with good Samaritans conspicuous by their absence as one of football’s true Marmite characters waited roadside for help to come along. Instead, related Robbie, a fusillade of ‘V’ signs and other not overly cordial hand gestures came his way.

All things considered, it’s a good job a vehicle containing Welsh Rugby Union high-ups Richard Keywood-Collier, Abi Tierney and Dave Reddin didn’t experience mechanical problems that necessitated an unscheduled stop on the M4 between Swansea and Bridgend this week, for, again, as in the instance cited above, immediate hard-shoulder assistance might not have been forthcoming, what with Ospreys’ supporters positively spitting feathers over the governing body’s decision to enter into a “period of exclusivity” with the region’s owners Y11 Sports & Media to discuss the prospect of the group buying rivals Cardiff.

Maybe we can stretch the unhappiness all the way across to Cardiff, many of whose followers seemed similarly dismayed at the unfolding events, with influential sections of the club’s support creditably making clear they didn’t want to be associated in any way with the potential culling of a rival team. In fact, let’s go further and say dismay about where this seems to be heading has been widespread, with some from the southern hemisphere joining in.

What a way to start 2026.

A new year is supposed to be a time for renewal, but in Welsh rugby it seems to be a time for doubling down and carrying on where the old year left off.

Nor had the public mood changed much when the WRU and Ospreys chief executive Lance Bradley issued statements on the fast-moving events. The governing body confirmed its intention to sell Cardiff to Y11, with the Arms Park entity remaining “an independent club and brand playing in Cardiff”, while Bradley said in his update: “I want to make clear Ospreys  will continue to play in the URC and EPCR competitions until at least the end of the 2026-27 season.”

Unsurprisingly, few caps were thrown in the air across the region once styled as Ospreylia.

RIP what black-shirted supporters like to see as the one true region, then?

Many assume so, but a well-placed source this writer spoke to an hour or two after those statements had dropped declined to accept such a scenario, insisting the region’s future had far from been written off and pointing out that all the regions had only limited contracts with the union.

However, within minutes of that conversation concluding, Swansea Council’s leader Rob Stewart was critical of the WRU’s plans to shed a professional team, saying “there was a clear indication that they saw no viable future for the Ospreys within their new arrangements”.

In sport it’s also important to carry people with you and a precondition of that is to keep them informed whenever possible

Those who view the world through an Ospreys prism would find it hard to interpret Stewart’s comments as anything but ominous.

What can we say about Y11’s owners? They have had a lower public profile than some on witness protection schemes. No one expected them to pop up at daily press conferences and of course a degree of confidentiality in business is necessary, but in sport it’s also important to carry people with you and a precondition of that is to keep them informed whenever possible. Evidently, as it stands, not many in the stands or in the playing group feel enough boxes have been ticked on that score.

“We have been left in the dark by Y11 and the WRU,” said Ospreys’ admirable hooker Sam Parry in an X post on behalf of the players. “We ourselves have had no information regarding the ongoing situation. We struggle to believe the most successful Welsh team to exist with the biggest history is on the brink of non-existence.” Such incredulity will chime with many.

From here, there still seems a way out of this bind, involving a reassessment of priorities and better funding for four pro teams with increased investment in the pathways. But, on the evidence of what we’ve seen so far, such arguments have failed to hit the radar screens of those running the show in Wales, who seem committed to a three-region model as part of a wider restructuring programme.

The various WhatsApp groups this writer is part of have been more than a bit lively these past few days, with plenty having their say. Some contributors were measured, others seemed to forget that the days of people being put in stocks on village greens were well behind us. But at least all concerned cared.

Might a backlash yet change matters? All sports teams depend on supporters and the priceless commodity of goodwill. Without it, they are nothing. Again, though, there is no obvious sign of the few heeding what plenty are saying.

Understandably, the saga and its unfolding chapters dominated the rugby week west of the River Severn, overshadowing even the Wales squad announcement for the Six Nations.

You feel a bit for Steve Tandy, who increasingly resembles a man trying to restore order during an air raid. Positive news is drowned out by noise from all around. It shouldn’t happen, but it does, because it’s Welsh rugby.

His squad for the Six Nations was reasonably well-received by those able to look away for a moment from the elephant that seems to be ever-present in the Welsh rugby room these days.

Of course, there was the blow of not being able to include the injured Jac Morgan and Taulupe Faletau. At one point, Faletau appeared on course to make the cut, only for yet another injury to befall him. Has the great man walked under every ladder in Christendom? Or perhaps cracked a particularly large mirror at some point in recent years? We should be told.

Fully fit and firing, Tomas Francis will be an asset, not least because he is a Test-quality scrummager who boasts vast experience.

But elsewhere there have been welcome returns to the fold, not least in the shape of Tomas Francis, featuring again after an absence stretching back to October 2023, since when he has been playing in France for Provence in ProD2.

Fully fit and firing, he will be an asset, not least because he is a Test-quality scrummager who boasts vast experience. Is he ready to play international rugby after so long away from the scene? Wales are desperate to improve their set-piece, but presumably Tandy would have watched footage of Francis and had reports on him before giving him a ring, so the answer is: we’ll have to assume so.

Uncapped Gabriel Hamer-Webb comes into the picture despite being lightly played by Leicester Tigers this season. The 25-year-old looked sharp enough in the Champions Cup match against Bayonne earlier this month, making three clean breaks, but with Adam Radwan and Ollie Hassell-Collins also on Leicester’s books, he has yet to feature in a run-on side for the club in  the Gallagher Premiership.

But maybe his efforts for Cardiff last term, when he scored nine tries in 14 starts, have stood him in good stead. Current Wales attack coach Matt Sherratt was heading up the Arms Park coaching operation at the time and presumably would have been impressed by what he saw from the 6ft, 15st wing.

Tandy made the point that Wales weren’t blessed with “obscene physical stature”, so he understandably hailed the return of the 6ft 4in, 17st 5lb centre Eddie James to the set-up.

Nor is the Scarlet just a big unit who can scatter defenders. He also has soft hands and is on an upward curve. Owen Watkin’s presence in the squad is also significant, with the Osprey solid in defence and a sharp midfield organiser.

And the selectors will want Mason Grady, another who will add to Wales’ backline heft, to demand starting-lineup selection. On a good day, the Cardiff player can look close to unstoppable; at other times, he can struggle to get into games. Consistency is key and Grady needs to make those high-level performances his default setting.

Potentially significant, too, is the reappearance of Sam Costelow after his recovery from injury. It is far from unknown for the stock of Welsh players to rise in their absence – just watch after the next one goes down – but Costelow definitely added to the Scarlets’ game in his comeback game against Northampton in the Champions Cup. Their backline looked slicker and they won the battle for territory.

At the very least, the Scarlet should provide good competition for Dan Edwards and Jarrod Evans at fly-half.

Can Wales improve on last year’s miseries? It would be difficult not to. But the concern is that whatever happens on the pitch will be overshadowed by events off it.

Those unlucky to miss out include the in-form Keelan Giles and Rio Dyer plus the best-performing full-back in Wales this season, Angus O’Brien, a player whose kicking out of hand has done much to spark the Dragons in recent times. He also marshals the east Walians from the back and offers an extra playmaking option. Omitting him seems more than a bit questionable.

Youngsters Che Hope and Morgan Morse also fail to make the cut, but their time will come. Tommy Reffell, Jake Ball, Rhys Davies, Ross Moriarty and James Ratti can count themselves unfortunate not to be involved, too.

Can Wales improve on last year’s miseries? It would be difficult not to. But the concern is that whatever happens on the pitch will be overshadowed by events off it.

Going by what’s on social media, most people don’t appear to want their sport to be served up with a side order of strife, worry and ill-feeling amid threats of teams being shed. That way lies only disengagement and long-term toxicity.

It is up to the union to come up with a solution that fixes the “immense disconnect” between the governing body and supporters that MPs identified in midweek. Vision and leadership are the base requirements for that task.

What else?

A man delivering parcels to my house amid a howling wind and incessant rain on Wednesday was positively soaked through to the skin. “It never seems to sort itself out!” he lamented.

He was talking about the weather.

He could have been talking about Welsh rugby.