Welsh rugby's financial challenges are well-documented, as are the measures being taken to put it on a firmer footing.
No longer is it a shock when English or French sides announce the signings of Welsh players, with Ross Moriarty, Dillon Lewis and Jarrod Evans committing to clubs outside of Wales over the past week or so.
There are many who rejoice at such news. Let them play where they want, plying their trade for big clubs in a superior league can only improve them as players is the argument which is often put forward.
Yes, there is some merit in that argument. Playing for the likes of Toulouse in the Top14 or Saracens in the Gallagher Premiership could potentially propel someone to the next level.
But is it really in Welsh rugby's best interests if the majority of its best players are representing clubs outside of Wales? Opinions vary but having thought about it long and hard, for me the answer is a big fat no.
Everything is geared towards Test rugby but people need to realise the success of the men's national side is intrinsically linked with the health and wellbeing of its professional clubs.
Furthermore, if the bulk of our best players are away in England or France, then preparing a team for Test rugby would be a total nightmare for Warren Gatland and future coaches.
The Welsh Rugby Union's original 60-cap ruling, which has now been brought down to 25, was never introduced to benefit the regions; it was enacted to increase preparation time for the national side, giving the Wales coach greater access to his players.
Imagine half the Wales squad were playing their club rugby in England and France, then a large chunk of the players could be available for as little as 25% of training sessions as a result of PRL (Premiership Rugby Limited) and the LNR's (French National Rugby League/Ligue Nationale de Rugby) strict player release rule, where players aren't available to Wales for fallow weeks or if they're not involved in the matchday 23.
Welsh rugby fans need to wake up to that fact.
Many critics also argue that letting the more experienced internationals leave would free up more opportunities for some of Wales' brightest young talents.
Yes, I can't argue with that but development isn't purely throwing 10 or 12 youngsters into a professional side and expecting them to learn on the job. They need experienced internationals next to them, players who have been there and done it, someone who can show them what is right from wrong both on and off the pitch on a daily basis.
Just ask Justin Tipuric how influential Marty Holah was in his early development or Regan King with Jonathan Davies.
Culture is everything in professional sport, and you need experienced internationals to maximise this.
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Also, Welsh rugby should be about more than the national side. It should be a strategic aim of the WRU to have at least two of its professional sides competing for silverware every season.
Success for Cardiff, Dragons, Ospreys and Scarlet should be as important as the Wales team lifting silverware. We need successful professional rugby on a weekly basis in Wales to keep fans engaged, and to lift the level of rugby in this country.
This is why I've always been in favour of some sort of cap rule as long as the players are paid fair wages.
This brings us onto the situation with Joe Hawkins and Will Rowlands. I was a bit shocked when I heard 20-year-old Ospreys centre Hawkins had decided to leave Wales, not least because Exeter director of rugby Rob Baxter had flat out denied in February he had spoken to him.
But mainly I was surprised because he is arguably already Wales' first-choice centre with a big future ahead of him, and he also falls well short of 25 caps.
You can make a sound argument for allowing the very highest earners leave Welsh rugby, like Dan Biggar or Taulupe Faletau, but when you can't hold onto a 20-year-old you know you have serious problems.
On the face of it, he has made himself ineligible to play for Wales but it appears he might have signed his contract in October, before he won his first cap, which would mean he remains available.
Unfortunately, this case has the potential to get really messy after Ospreys boss Toby Booth claimed he had held talks with the player about his future very recently.
The truth will come out in the end when Hawkins and his representatives are required to provide the relevant paperwork to prove he signed his Exeter contract before he won his first cap.
Will Rowlands could well be another casualty of the 25-cap rule, having signed for French giants Racing 92 which may stop him from playing at the World Cup.
Gatland will hope the powerful second-row can reach 25 caps in the pre-World Cup warm-up Tests in August, but that depends when his Racing 92 contracts starts.
While the absence of Rowlands, who currently has 23 caps, in Wales' World Cup squad would damage their on-field prospects, there is a bigger picture to consider with various sources telling WalesOnline that other players have kept offers from overseas at arm's length to keep their chances of playing for Wales alive.
If you bend the law for Rowlands you have to do it for everyone else, and voting to grant one player special dispensation would be unfair on others.
While I do have sympathy for the players, you either strictly adhere to the 25-cap ruling or you bin it altogether. There can be no halfway house.
Welsh rugby fans need to realise there is a bigger picture than the World Cup, and bending the rules to ensure a couple of good players are available is not the right thing to do. Decisions need to be made with the long-term future of Welsh rugby at heart.
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