It didn't take long...

First topic message reminder :

Roger hinted it may be over and out for the one of the Regions. Can all 4 survive?

Here's what I wrote when the PRGB was set up:
Everybody talks about common purposes, but give it a few weeks and the old cracks will appear.

Sadly, it's wasn't the most controversial prophesy or the most surprisingly bourn out.

Mr Lewis chose the festive season to drop his "three Regions minimum" bombshell. Just before the four region structure saw two sell out crowds for the derby matches. It also came just weeks after the fanfare of the establishment of the PRGB. All talk of working together sits uncomfortably with this public statement.

The radical plan of course would be the establishment of a Valleys region, the merger of Newport and Cardiff as East Wales and the Scarlets and Ospreys as West Wales. RGC1404 in the North would be a development region and tasked with pushing for a place in the Pro11.

The cataclysmic events required for that to end up the plan have not and will not happen. It would be risky (resistance will be huge) expensive (the WRU could probably not afford to set up a Valleys region without a serious change of priorities) and far too sensible in the long term.

What of my own team, the Scarlets? Does Parc Y Scarlets ensure that they can not be allowed to fail? After watching their ineffective pack being mauled alive by the ferocious Ospreys on St Stephen's day, I'm not so sure.

Two points arise for me. The Second place in the Rabo flatters the Scarlets, who have been woeful in Europe since half time in Clermont. And, as much as I hate to say it, the existence of the Scarlets merely holds the jewel in the Regional Crown, the Ospreys, back.

The Ospreys beat Toulouse and demolished the Scarlets. They have shown precious little of that form since the RDS last season.

It's as if beating the Scarlets in the Liberty on Boxing Day is actually their top priority. When Paul James left his fondest moment was not captaining the Ospreys to a defeat of Bath and then Australia within a week when half his team were away with Wales, but playing when they smashed the Scarlets 60-17. Take the Scarlets away and the Ospreys may actually concentrate on Europe.

That leads to the more obvious point, the drain on the Ospreys from having a stubborn little club like Llanelli on their doorstep. The better Scarlets players would disperse to the other Regions and the Ospreys would be at the front of the cue.

Scarlets fans would boycott any merged team, of course they would. But then Leicester would come to town for a Heineken Cup crunch match:

"But Dai mun, I thought you were not ever going to support the West Wales Scarlet Ospreys, ever, ever, Amen"

"I'm going to support Leicester..."

What the Scarlets have done with the resources they have is commendable and they are starting to turn the corner. We should not read too much into one result, but I fear the future if the WRU take a hit in revenue (Wales Ireland 6 Nation tickets are in plentiful supply) and the Scarlets fail to make real strides, they may be the ones for the chop.

But what of the Dragons, how can they survive? Well, they could box clever and reach out to the rest of Gwent and the Valleys. Make themselves indispensable, as Cardiff seem reluctant to do so. It seems the Blues are happy to rely on their Capital City team status to ward off any threat. The depressing thing is that they are probably right.

The Dragons have much more chance of attracting the Valleys fans than the Scarlets. Would they be flexible enough to do so, or would 'Newport' cast too much shadow?

So, as this is a public statement by Mr Lewis, the only sensible conclusion is that the WRU and Regions are not pulling together even after the setting up of the PRGB. It has been deemed appropriate to "put about a bit of stick" in public; but where's the carrot?

Stone Motif wrote:

Scrumdown wrote:

Stone Motif wrote:Hazell is worth about 50m. Tony Brown over 100m. God alone knows how much Dylan Matthews is worth. You reckon they can't match the poxy 1.6m we get from the WRU?

Not accoording to the sunday times rich list. Nowhere near. Get your facts right.

The same ST Rich List that doesn't include stuff like property portfolio, overseas investments and other non-publically available information? Clownshoes!

Well, Martyn Hazell isn't even on the sunday times rich list but is estimated to be worth around £14million by the western mail. If the information is not publicly available then how do YOU know that he has an additional £36 million hidden overseas. You don't.

No but I know how these things are calculated and therefore know they are way under the mark. And please, I don't mind discussing the ST but the Western Fail? If you read that clownshoes paper that explains a lot.

Scrumdown,

Seeing as we are dealing in facts, can you back up your Charteris claim on that Bath bidding for Faletau thread.