A few years ago, many of us warned about the long term damage to the game under Roger Lewis and David Pickering. The lack of investment in the direct supply chain to the national team (i.e. our pro game) compared to their rivals was a key part of the conversation. Many 1/

reporters went along with the Roger narrative of paying down debt at a time when interest rates were at an historic low. In fact, when Roger 'quit', he proof read his 'epitaph' written by Delme Parfitt, such was the cosy relationship between the WRU and Wales Online 2/

At this time, our pro teams slashed their salary bill to under £3.5m just in order to remain solvent. The WRU commissioned PwC to produce "Project Engage" as a roadmap for the future of the pro game. It noted how the WRU didn't want to carry the financial risk of the pro game 3/

and it noted that the only way forward for Welsh rugby was a collaborative approach between the WRU and our four pro teams. That was the beginning of the end for Roger but his lapdogs in Parfitt, Howell and Abandanalllogic remained in place, sticking the boot into the pro 4/

teams at each and every opportunity they had. Now that Howell and Parfitt have 'moved on', they are still doing it, which just proves their abilities in comprehending a sport that professionalised itself during their careers. They weren't up to assessing business strategy 5/

And, just as in every business, a lack of investment takes time to work its way through before it affects the end product. We are now seeing the fruits of Roger Lewis' time as Chair of the WRU: whilst Bristol, ASM & Toulon open multi million pound training venues, our pro 6/

teams use Council facilities or dated facilities. Whilst the IRFU secure €18m from the Irish Government whilst writing off the €16m its branches owe it, Lewis acolytes Paterson and Steve Phillips lump the total cost of Covid on to the four pro clubs. Remember, above, what 7/

PwC noted about the WRU not wanting the financial risk of the professional game? Well, that's proved true, hasn't it? To look at it another way, the Irish teams just got a €34m boost whilst ours took a £20m hit. That's about a £50m swing in their favour, by the way 8/

On top of that Lewis approach to the pro game (screw the 'regions', both financially and in every way possible), we have that wonderful ERC debacle whereby he prevented the Welsh clubs taking up the Heads of Terms offered by the English, therefore forcing the PrO'Not 14 9/

on to the game in Wales for years to come. A league with a pathetically weak TV deal (it's about £1.5m per year per club, compared with about €5m per year per club in the French league and over £3m per year per club in the English league) that only underlines the disparity 10/

in finances that our Welsh teams have to face. Lewis' replacement, Martyn Phillips, then instigated a ludicrous wage cap system that is skewed to prevent internal competition between clubs that are, erm, competitors. On top of that, some of the contractual payment for 11/

services provided to the national team is now ring fenced to be used solely on players for Team Wales. And, guess what, those Team Wales players are barely available for their clubs. So the WRU convinced our pro clubs to spend a huge chunk of their own money in a way that 12/

hinders the pro club but benefits Team Wales. So at each and every turn, our pro teams are screwed by their own Union. They aren't able to trade in a profitable market place, they aren't able to choose their own salaries, they aren't able to spend their own money as they 13/

see fit. Plus, on top of all of that, they are kept deliberately financially poor so they are 'reliant' on the WRU for survival. PwC suggested collaboration, what we've only ever had is akin to a controlling, abusive relationship. 14/

So what's the cure for this? Sadly, because so many with an interest in Welsh rugby are fed their information by the aforementioned Wales Online, with its infantile appreciation of the business of sport, they think the answer is 'change the regions'. Remembering, of course 15/

the WRU just 'loaned' these regions £20m to pay back over 5 years. These same people scream "poor crowds" in Wales, ignoring the fact that crowds per population are the best in Wales in the PrO'Not14. These same people forget we have four teams in a 2m population zone 16/

So what is the answer? The answer is three clubs, playing in the English system, with proper training facilities and a Union incentivised to attract as much private income as possible. The WRU should be screaming for the calendar to change to allow domestic rugby to grow 17/

It should be screaming to align ownership models in leagues so that Union owned clubs play themselves and privately owned clubs have their own league. Why? To align priorities. The WRU should be a light touch on the pro game & should focus its efforts on the community game 18/

BUT BUT BUT, whilst the shadow of Roger looms large (even larger as he advised Ieuan Evans, a man whose sole directorship is of his own £50k company but who is trying now to chair a £80m company, with zero experience) in Phillips and Paterson, we will continue 19/

with the master / slave relationship, we will continue with the downward spiral in our game whilst the WRU builds a fucking hotel, we will continue in a dead end league whose only hope is CVC, we will continue to get left behind.