LONG READ The A-Z of Welsh rugby for 2025-26

You know you are living through lively rugby times in Wales when a call goes up for supporters to march in the streets and send a message to the world that they’ve had enough. The man doing the prompting on that count was David Moffett, the former Welsh Rugby Union chief executive, who, it seems fair to say, is finding it hard to be impressed with the current governing body’s vision for the professional game in Wales, involving as it does an ‘optimal’ two-team structure.

Llanelli town councillors have also rallied fans, with a ‘Save Our Scarlets’ march planned for September 27.

Expect no shortage of kicking and screaming ahead.

Wales’ men are under new leadership with Steve Tandy in charge, hoping to steer the team out of the ocean of misery they have found themselves in for too long, while Wales Women crashed out of the World Cup with three wins and a bottom-place pool finish, after which the WRU’s head of women’s rugby Belinda Moore said: “You can’t say they have failed.” You can and plenty of people did say exactly that.

But it’s the four regions who have most to ponder, amid the threat of major change coming their way.

Ahead of the new season, below is where the sport west of the River Severn is at the highest level, from A to Z.

A is for Arguments

Lots of these can be expected over the next few weeks and possibly over the next few years – maybe even over the next few decades. Whatever the result of the Welsh Rugby Union’s deliberations on the way forward for top-level rugby in Wales, certain people are going to be disappointed, whether on the governing body or whether attached to regions who might end up disadvantaged or even done away with as a result of the drive for change. Expect bitterness, recriminations and maybe the whole lot spilling over into court. Happy days are very definitely not guaranteed.

B is for Ball

That would be Jake Ball, as opposed to anything produced by Gilbert, with the 6ft 6in lock back in Welsh rugby after reversing his decision to retire. At 33 the bearded one is not without miles on the clock, but he also has the priceless quality of experience and says he feels in a better place physically than when he left the Scarlets for a stint in Japan in 2021. Scarlets and Wales have missed his missile-like clearouts. For both, his return could be a significant plus.

C is for Cardiff Rugby

They are the only Welsh team to lift silverware in Europe, with two Challenge Cup successes, while bagging an Anglo-Welsh trophy along the way. Wales’ capital city is also pretty much everyone’s banker as one venue for professional rugby moving forward, on the grounds of geography and commercial potential. On the debit side, Cardiff’s financial stewardship has left much to be desired, with the club having gone into temporary administration in April when its business and assets were sold to the WRU. A possible concern for those with blue and black eyeballs might be if the union opted for new teams on the pro scene with completely fresh names, but, whatever happens, supporters in the capital are almost certain to have elite rugby to watch.

D is for Dragons

The Rodney Paraders probably feel most at risk in the present climate with Cardiff and their capital-city advantages barely a dozen miles away. Any move to set up an East team would almost certainly lead to the Arms Park being seen as the new outfit’s main venue. On grounds of on-pitch achievement, the Dragons might also struggle to match the survival cases put forward by the other Welsh pro sides, with no significant silverware to boast since their inception and just 10 wins over their past 72 league matches. They have strengthened their squad this summer and insist they are sustainable, while they fired off a statement recently arguing “no compelling case has been made for reducing the number of professional teams to two”. They must hope the WRU listen.

E is for the English

Can we all agree it would be huge for rugby in Wales if the professional teams were playing the lot from over the Severn on a regular basis rather than facing sides from South Africa, Italy, Ireland and Scotland every weekend? An Anglo-Welsh competition would help revive interest and potentially transform the attendance picture west of the border. Matches between Welsh and English clubs had huge appeal on both sides of the divide in the amateur days, but no one seems able to make such an arrangement happen in this era – more’s the pity. Perhaps we should have filed this one under D for Dream.

F is for Fly-half shirt

Wales need someone to lay claim to this. Can Dan Edwards or Sam Costelow step forward? The evidence is inconclusive. Playing at No. 10 in Test rugby demands the ability to dictate play with consistent authority. Maybe one or both of the above will develop such a quality in time – we cannot say and, indeed, Edwards is only just starting out as a Test player. What of Callum Sheedy? Might he reassert himself in 2025-26? Could Joe Hawkins make an impression at fly-half for the Scarlets? Is Sam Davies the answer heading towards the next World Cup? Can Ioan Lloyd catch the eye at Cardiff? So many questions.

G is for Governing body bigwigs

Abi Tierney and Richard Collier-Keywood lead the charge here, albeit Tierney faces health challenges and should be wished a speedy recovery. Anyway, the union’s two main leaders are overseeing potentially momentous changes in the Welsh game with no guarantee of successful outcomes. Those who lose out in the weeks ahead are unlikely to accept their fate happily. Welsh rugby must hope Tierney, Collier-Keywood and those around them know what they are doing.

H is for Home

Ross Moriarty back in the city where he grew up, Wyn Jones, Dillon Lewis, Joe Hawkins and Javan Sebastian also in Wales again, along with Jake Ball, while ex-Cardiff schoolboy Ioan Lloyd has returned to the capital to play his rugby. Meantime, Ospreys will be playing at a temporary home in Bridgend, ahead of their switch to a redeveloped St Helen’s.

I is for Interest

Will it drain in Wales if the regional scene is cut by 50 percent? You don’t need an Eeyore mindset to have concerns on this one. Proponents argue such a move would concentrate money and talent and create winning teams, but Welsh rugby has a tradition of tribalism and disenfranchised supporters might not be easily persuaded to get aboard the new model.

J is for Japan

Wales host Eddie Jones’ Brave Blossoms in the autumn as part of a schedule that also sees them take on New Zealand, South Africa and Argentina. No one wants to be alarmist, but Wales are currently closer to Netherlands in terms of global ranking points than they are to the All Blacks, while South Africa are reigning world champions and Argentina have beaten both the Springboks and the Kiwis over the past year. If Wales want a win this November, then, it might be a good idea to get matters right against Eddie’s boys.

K is for Key men

Taulupe Faletau, Aaron Wainwright, Marnus van der Merwe and Jac Morgan are among those fitting the bill here, all being players of significant quality. Their teams will hope they steer clear of injuries.

L is for Lion (of the Test variety)

That would be Jac Morgan, the only Welshman to make it into the Test picture with Andy Farrell’s 2025 tourists and an individual who impressed pretty much everyone with the way he conducted himself on and off the field while in Australia.

M is for Moffett

Hard to ignore, even when 12,000 miles away in New Zealand, but David Moffett is back. The man who oversaw the introduction of regional rugby in Wales has returned to the scene as head of sports at Scarlets investors House of Luxury, and he doesn’t appear to have reined in his penchant for straight talking. Asked what he felt about the WRU’s plan to radically change Welsh rugby, he declared: “I thought the entire document was a crock of s**t with no understanding of Welsh culture, fans or the future of sport.” For the avoidance of doubt, that would be a thumbs down, then.

N is for Neighbourly jousts

Derbies and all that go with them have traditionally given Welsh rugby much of its character, with supporters, players and coaches relishing opportunities to put one over the lot from down the road. Such matches tend to attract the biggest crowds, with sharp rivalries to the fore. A move to only a couple of pro teams, however, would see just two local shootouts each term at elite level in Wales, compared with the 12 that take place under the existing structure. However you slice it, that’s not a plus for Welsh rugby.

O is for Ospreys

Wales’ most successful pro side in terms of silverware in the regional era with four league titles and an Anglo-Welsh cup final success to look back on. They also play out of Wales’ second city and so have significant commercial potential and plan to move to a redeveloped St Helen’s the season after this one. On the other side of the ledger, attendances haven’t been anything to write home about for a while and a straight choice between Ospreys and Scarlets for a spot in a rejigged structure would lead to supporters on both sides of the Loughor Bridge perspiring excessively. Ospreys will hope their city location and history of on-pitch achievement will help protect them, but these are unpredictable times.

P is for Prop

More specifically, tighthead prop. How Wales could do with one who actually dominates scrum battles at Test level or at least properly holds his own in such matters. Archie Griffin has admirers but his lack of top-level game-time at Bath is not helping him. Henry Thomas seems the best of the rest at this point. But Wales are short in this position.

Q is for Quote

While some will be behind the WRU’s much-debated plans, others will be more cautious, perhaps chiming with the mood of Jonathan ‘Jiffy’ Davies, who said on social media: “All decision makers will be gone in two years and their decisions will affect Welsh rugby for ever. I’ve no confidence they have the rugby knowledge or the feel for the game and what it means for people in Wales.” Of course, we don’t know for sure if those making the calls will have exited two years hence, but we can say it’s important that someone running the show is able to put a finger on Welsh rugby’s pulse. Does a consultation survey that contains a number of questions that have been perceived by some as loaded truly cut it? Many would have their doubts.

R is for Reddin

The WRU’s director of rugby and elite performance, Dave Reddin is widely viewed as the main architect of the governing body’s plan for structural adjustments in Welsh rugby. On the professional networking platform LinkedIn, it is said he has spent “30 years in professional sport creating and delivering highly disruptive strategies which have underpinned transformational success”. Welsh rugby fans will understand the bit about how highly disruptive his strategies can be; what they are not so sure about is whether they will underpin transformational success if implemented in the oval-ball game on the western side of the River Severn. Let’s be honest, no one can say with certainty what will result. Roll those dice? Gulp.

S is for Scarlets

Welsh rugby’s western most elite club who pride themselves on their passion and history and who have banked two league titles in the regional era, they would lose out if the WRU moved to a city-based solution for the game in Wales. Would Scarlets die-hards travel in droves to watch rugby in Swansea every fortnight? We’ll answer that by wondering whether Rangers football fans would hurry along to Celtic’s ground to view a combined team in action every second weekend. The argument is the rugby cultures of the Scarlets and their nearest and dearest are so distinct as to make a blending of the two hard to imagine.

T is for Tandy

It is fair to say there have been better times to take over the Wales coaching reins, what with the national side having lost 18 of their last 19 Tests and the top-level scene facing potentially seismic upheaval. But Steve Tandy is nothing if not phlegmatic, a man who knows Welsh rugby and should command respect with his honesty and willingness to tell it as it is. Expect Wales’ players to want to play for him.

U is for Uncertainty

Or any other word that sums up the state of doubt and uneasiness that bedevils the oval-ball sport in Wales as the 2025-26 season beckons. Players and coaches feel it, backroom staff feel it, supporters feel it, those running the professional teams feel it – even the dogs in the street feel it. Who’ll be for the chop? Will anyone be chopped? Who’ll suffer a drop in funding? Who’ll lose their jobs? Who’ll see professional rugby disappear from their locality? A new campaign should be a time for optimism; instead Welsh rugby is in limbo until the WRU decide where all this is going.

V is for Victories

The Dragons, in particular, will want to see more of these after managing just one in the URC last season. A winner like Filo Tiatia will know that’s nowhere near good enough. Wales’ men and women will also want to see more victories, too. Performances haven’t been good enough, no matter how much gloss officialdom attempts to apply.

W is for Wisdom

You’d hope a touch of the above would come the way of the Welsh Rugby Union as they prepare to make calls that are big by any standard. Do they stick or do they twist? And if they take the latter option how much do they twist and who loses out? Where’s Solomon when you need him most?

X is for X-factor

Once, Welsh rugby was well-stocked with players capable of lighting up games almost on demand, who could lure supporters to games in big numbers through sheer star power. Not so much anymore. That said, there are still a few capable of sparkle, including Jack Walsh, Blair Murray, Rio Dyer and Ioan Lloyd, along with Morgan Morse, Taulupe Faletau, Thomas Young, Gareth Davies and a few others. Look out for starburst splashes from them in the coming months.

Y is for Young players

Piercing the clouds of gloom, there are significant next-generation talents breaking through, among them Morgan Morse, Huw Anderson, Macs Page, Harri Ackerman, Louie Hennessey, Sam Scott, Harry Thomas, Harri Beddall, Ryan Woodman and Steffan Emanuel. Some see Ospreys back-rower Morse as the pick of the crop with his explosive ability to make a difference. In time, the 21-year-old could be special.

Z is for Zammit

Louis Rees-Zammit is back from an 18-month stint in the USA where he discovered what plenty of others had learned before him, namely that it can be exceptionally difficult for a cross-over athlete to make it in a new sport, and especially if the sport in question is American football. But Steve Tandy won’t worry too much about that. Rees-Zammit, who has signed for Bristol, won’t solve Wales’ ball-carrying problem up front or the scrummaging issues that have plagued them since Tomas Francis decamped to France. But he is a world-class finisher and Wales will be stronger for his return.