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The latest rugby news, views and gossip
These are your latest rugby headlines on Wednesday, January 21.
WRU bosses to be grilled
Welsh Rugby Union bosses face a huge moment today as they face a group of MPs and will be asked to explain exactly what is going on with Welsh rugby and why they are pursuing cutting from four teams to three.
WRU chief executive Abi Tierney and chairman Richard Collier-Keywood will give evidence to the Welsh Affairs Committee at 2.30pm, which you will be able to follow live on WalesOnline. The committee will also here from official supporters’ clubs of the four regions, with tensions heightened by the decision to choose Ospreys owners Y11 as the preferred bidder for Cardiff – a move seen as a path to delivering the cut in teams.
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On Tuesday, Ospreys players released a statement of their own, revealing they had been kept completely in the dark by the union and the club’s owners.
It is likely to be an uncomfortable afternoon for Tierney and Collier-Keywood, who are under huge pressure amid a furious backlash to the proposals. Fans are sure to scrutinise every word, with the pair needing to put up a convincing argument and provide evidence for why their chosen route is the correct one for the future of the game. They insist there is not enough money in the game to fund four teams and believe evidence around player numbers and schools means there is only room for one team in the west.
Collier-Keywood is already facing the threat of being ousted, with an EGM looming as disgruntled clubs decide if and when to pull the trigger.
The hearing in Westminster will be chaired by Newport West and Islwyn MP Ruth Jones less than two weeks before Wales kick-off their Six Nations campaign.
Tandy addresses strike action threat
Meanwhile, Wales head coach Tandy has addressed the possible threat of strike action by players as Welsh rugby enters a period of hostility not seen for years.
Monday brought the bombshell revelation that Ospreys owners Y11 were set to enter a period of exclusivity with the WRU over buying rivals Cardiff Rugby.
That has plunged the game and the future of the Ospreys into major doubt, with players of the Swansea-based club posting a statement on their social media channels calling out the union and Y11 for not communicating the news directly to them.
The current situation has once again triggered the discussion of the possibility of strike action – something which came very close to being realised on the eve of the 2023 Six Nations match with England.
That was averted three years ago at the 11th hour but such is the toxic state of the game at present, that threat cannot be discounted as we head into this year’s tournament.
Tandy was asked about it at his squad announcement and said the players’ welfare would be his main priority.
“Look, for me, I think that’s more speculation,” he said. “It’s something the only thing I will do is I’ll constantly be in dialogue with the players, how they are feeling, any frustrations. And again, that is what I truly believe in as well.
“Irrelevant whether there’s something going on. We’d be having conversations with players, whether it be if there was development, if it’s home. You want to get to know more and more of these players and I sense from the autumn to the Six Nations boys are reaching out.
“These boys are starting to open up now and I truly believe a lot of the leaders have got voices. They know the environment we have and they can come and speak, share and be very open. They are not going to be judged on having a distraction or a fear.”
Cuthbert: Wales coaches ‘seeing something we’re not’
Wales international Alex Cuthbert says he remains unsure why Rio Dyer has been overlooked for the Six Nations squad.
Dyer was one of the notable omissions from Tandy’s squad when it was announced on Tuesday. It was an eyebrow-raising call, such has been Dyer’s form for a reinvigorated Dragons side that has rediscovered an ability to win rugby matches again.
Tandy has instead opted for Gabriel Hamer-Webb on the winger over the 24-year-old, who was part of the autumn squad.
Cuthbert says the coaches must be seeing “something we’re not”.
“I’d say it’s probably not far off the best squad that we can get together, obviously the likes of Jac Morgan are injured,” Cuthbert said of the squad. “In the back three, maybe a notable omission – a guy that’s been playing well for the Dragons – is Rio Dyer.
“It must be a decision around that and maybe giving [Gabriel] Hamer-Webb some international experience and game-time. There must be something key that they see in his game.
“I just think with Dyer probably going pretty well at Dragons, they must be seeing something that we’re not at the moment.”
Fellow Welsh international James Hook agreed that Dyer can be forgiven for feeling a little hard done by.
“Gabriel Hamer-Webb has been in good form, but probably the biggest surprise selection,” he said. “Rio Dyer and Keelan Giles can count themselves really really unlucky to miss out.”
Jones fumes at All Blacks bosses
Eddie Jones says he “really has a bee in his bonnet” over the way Scott Robertson’s sacking was handled by New Zealand rugby bosses, questioning the governing body on how reports of a player revolt reached the general public.
Last week, Robertson saw his four-year contract with New Zealand Rugby terminated after just two years in charge, having been made head coach of the national side after the 2023 Rugby World Cup.
While he led the All Blacks to 10 wins out of 13 Tests in 2025, he found himself under pressure following defeats to Argentina and South Africa at the Rugby Championship, with reports of tension between senior players and coaching staff hitting headlines hours before his sacking was confirmed.
It was widely reported that players were unhappy with the environment that Robertson had created within the national set-up, with All Blacks star Ardie Savea said to be “seriously unhappy” and reportedly a leading figure in the player ‘revolt’, which was denied by the governing body.
As the search for Robertson’s successor continues, Japan boss Jones has questioned whether the decision to sack the All Blacks boss will solve NZR’s real issues, while hitting out at the governing body over how they dealt with the situation in the media.
“They obviously did a survey and review at the end of the year. You would think that the comments made by the players about the coach and any other person involved in the review would be confidential,” the 65-year-old told the Rugby Unity podcast.
“They cease to be confidential when it’s useful for the union to jettison the coach. You have to feel for Ardie Savea in this situation as well; he’s been made out to be the bad guy.
“Players should always have a say on what’s going on, there’s no doubt about that. If you go to your local Starbucks or coffee shop, there’s 30 people in there. You do a survey, there will be one person whose coffee is too strong, one person whose coffee’s not strong enough, one person who says the air conditioning’s too warm.
“There’s always problems within a team,” Jones added. “They think on the basis of the information they’ve got that the problems are too big to be solved quickly. I really have a bee in my bonnet about how it’s been dealt with in the media by New Zealand Rugby; there should be more discretion used in this situation.”
