One of the clubs that voted against the Welsh Rugby Union having an independent chair has launched a robust defence of their reasons for doing so.
A motion which would have allowed the WRU board to appoint their own chair, someone not elected by the member clubs, went before the Union’s AGM on Sunday in Cardiff. It failed to secure the required 75 per cent approval from the clubs, receiving 65.6 per cent of the 221 votes.
That’s an outcome which has provoked widespread condemnation, with Dragons chairman David Buttress among those to comment strongly, calling it “appalling”.
READ MORE: 'Appalling' WRU AGM vote dubbed 'everything that is wrong with Welsh rugby'
Now one of the clubs that voted against the proposal put forward by the WRU Board has explained why to WalesOnline.
Aberavon Quins secretary Stuart Broad, who was among the club officials to speak against the motion at the AGM, said there were a number of reasons behind their decision.
“Anything that’s to be added as a special resolution to the agenda of an AGM has to be submitted by August 5. I knew that because we submitted four last year,” he said.
“We didn’t receive the agenda until the second week of October and I spoke to many other delegates who said the same thing. It was only then we got wind of what it was the board were putting forward.
“Rob Butcher (WRU chairman) did attend our district meeting and spent about five minutes explaining each motion.
“But when I tried to question the rationale behind some of the motions, including the one in particular that has caused a bit of a stir, all we were told was he had to shoot off to another district meeting and he didn’t have time to stick around and debate it."
He claimed: “It was just a case of ‘Here it is, these are the reasons why we are for it, I’m not going to answer your questions and I’m off’.
“So that was one of the big issues for us. There was no proper discussion or debate regarding the motion to appoint an unelected chair.”
Broad said the lack of financial detail behind the proposal had also been a factor in the club’s decision, along with wider concerns about the state of the community game in Wales.
“We are fully aware the WRU now is not a governing body, it is a brand, it’s a £100m business and you do need business-savvy people in charge running it,” he said.
“We get that argument and we accept it. But we have got a chief executive who gets paid £359,000 a year. If that’s not enough, then I don’t know what is.
“There were no renumeration plans or costings put in to outline how much the individual would get paid if this special resolution was passed. Rob got up and said they hadn’t even thought about that yet. They just wanted to get the motion passed first and foremost.
“But the biggest worry for us is that the community game in Wales is on life support at the moment. It’s really, really struggling. It’s dying a slow death.
“A lot of clubs are, for want of a better term, on their arse. Smaller village and valley clubs are on the brink of extinction.
“There are clubs struggling to put together a first team, there are record amounts of referees dropping out of the game.
“A lot of the emphasis seems to be on the business side of things and the pro game, whereas there seems to be very little interest or empathy for the community game.
“They must not forget that, above all else, the WRU is a governing body to the national sport of Wales that has a duty of care to more than 300 clubs and in that respect they are failing.
“We didn’t want to hand over even more power to the executives who are already doing a disservice to the community side of the game.”
Get your brilliant 48-page Wales at the World Cup preview special - it's a must-have historical souvenir
Dragons boss Buttress spoke out in very strong terms about the blocking of the motion on the independent chair, saying it was everything that is wrong with Welsh rugby.
He added: “It is totally heartbreaking for those of us who love the game that self interest and personal gain are put ahead of what is right for players, supporters etc. What business in its right mind allows this amateurism. Appalling. So depressing.”
Responding to those comments, Broad said: “That just echoes the sentiments of people who only focus on the professional game, the international game and, to a certain extent, the semi-professional Premiership.
“We do feel there is an element of disdain, certainly a lack of respect to the club volunteers like myself and the countless others around the country who give up our time to ensure the national sport of Wales gets back to where it should be.
“You only have to go around the clubs and speak to the actual supporters, not just the supporters of the regions or the national side, but the people that go out and follow their club every week to see there is growing concern over the direction the WRU are going in.”
He added: “The rhetoric being put out there by people for the motion of appointing an unelected chair heavily suggests the community clubs are represented by ill-informed oiks.
“The language used seems fuelled with contempt and disdain for the individuals who give up our time to ensure the sport of rugby is healthy in Wales. Three of the club delegates who spoke up on Sunday come from legal/business backgrounds themselves.”
Broad, whose club play in Division Two West, fully expects the proposal on an independent chair to be revisited at next year’s AGM.
“In all likelihood, it will probably get passed then,” he said.
“Even though we won the battle on Sunday, we are definitely losing the war.
“Come back and speak to me in 10 years' time and a good third of the membership - you are talking 100 clubs - will no longer be in existence.”
READ MORE:
