The Welsh Rugby Union and the Welsh regions have said there is “no room for manoeuvre” on the budget for player contracts in Wales despite the threat of strike action putting next week’s Six Nations fixture against England in jeopardy.
Nigel Walker, the WRU’s interim chief executive, met with senior Wales players on Wednesday in an attempt to soothe relations after it emerged strike action was being considered over the contract renewals, with a meeting soon to take place between the Welsh Rugby Players Association and players.
Having accepted pay cuts of 20% during the Covid period, players in Wales are now faced with further cuts under the proposed six-year deal between the WRU and the regions. The take-or-leave-it deal which has to be signed by 28 February – three days after the England game – would see lower wages all round and bonuses introduced into contracts for the first time.
However, the Professional Rugby Board, the body which consists of representatives of the four regions plus the WRU, said the new deal was necessary to bring sustainability to the sport.
“The new agreement offers a complete funding package to the professional game in Wales, but it does come with financial limitations which will directly affect salary negotiations,” said the PRB chair, Malcolm Wall, in a statement on Wednesday evening. “The cold facts are that the WRU and clubs have been paying salaries that their businesses cannot afford, so the new agreement establishes a new framework for contract negotiations.
“There is a stipulation that all current contracts will be honoured, but these businesses must return to a sustainable footing in order for the success we all crave to follow.
“The average salary of a Welsh professional rugby player under the new framework will be around £100k per year. We are confident that our salary packages are in line with the UK market. The PRB accepts that some better-funded English and French clubs are paying more, but this is where we must set the mark of sustainability in Wales.”
The PRB’s statement added that there was “no room for manoeuvre when it comes to the overall budget available for player contracts”. Walker said: “We know we are not in an ideal situation, but it is incredibly important for the whole game in Wales for us to get this next step right.”
Meanwhile, the Ospreys lock and former Wales international Bradley Davies has urged the PRB to listen to players’ concerns over the future of rugby in the country and to make the changes necessary to avoid a strike.
Davies, a second-row capped 66 times by his country and still in action for the Ospreys at the age of 36, said strike action is the “last option” for players and that a lack of representation at the top of the game in Wales is as big a frustration for players across the four regional teams as proposals for another pay cut.
“We choose to be rugby players. We aren’t asking for more money, we are just asking for a voice in the way things are run – player welfare, how many games you play, head injury stuff, mental health,” he said. “As players we have zero input into all that at the moment. All the boys want is a bit of communication.
“Let’s all get around a table, let’s speak, let’s make Welsh rugby good again. We are not far off it. If we had to strike, and that was the decision everyone made, then fair enough – but it’s the last, last option.”
While players have been offered verbal commitments from their regions, nothing can be firmed up until the new deal is signed. Some players have already left, many others are considering moves to England and abroad and, at a more basic level, many others are concerned for their financial futures.
“The WRPA has improved 10-fold since I first became a member and the people involved now are outstanding,” said Davies. “But we’re still not where we need to be. We haven’t got representation on the PRB and can’t put the players’ point of view across.
“During Covid, we accepted all the pay cuts, we didn’t argue one bit. We just accepted everything that was chucked at us. All we wanted was a voice and a seat on the board, and that was stopped. Yet we’re expected to rock up for work, run into a brick wall, take our money and then get up Monday and go again. All the boys are asking for is a bit of a say in their own destiny.”
