The latest rugby news from Wales and beyond
Here’s your round-up of all the latest rugby news for Wednesday, June 18.
Future of Welsh game set to be decided
The future direction of the professional game in Wales could be decided today in a meeting between the Welsh Rugby Union and its four professional clubs – Cardiff, Dragons, Ospreys and Scarlets.
Welsh rugby powerbrokers are seriously considering cutting the number of professional clubs in Wales to three if not two, while a tiered funding model is another option.
All four clubs were on the verge of signing a new Professional Rugby Agreement (PRA) but the WRU’s takeover of Cardiff after the club entered administration changed everything.
Both the Ospreys and Scarlets were concerned the WRU could turn Cardiff into a “super region” which would disadvantage the west Wales clubs. Sign up to Inside Welsh rugby on Substack to get exclusive news stories and insight from behind the scenes in Welsh rugby.
In the end both Cardiff and the Dragons signed the new PRA which includes increased and fixed funding along with significant debt relief.
But the west Wales duo opted against it prompting the WRU to activate the two-year notice clause on the old PRA.
That left the professional game in Wales on a precipice with the WRU announcing it would no longer fund four clubs equally.
But the direction of travel is pointing towards a reduction of professional teams.
The WRU are expecting to reveal their plan in a Professional Rugby Board meeting later today.
Farrell to name team to face Argentina
British & Irish Lions boss Andy Farrell is set to name his squad for the upcoming warm-up clash with Argentina today.
The Lions taken on the Pumas in Dublin on Friday night, with captain Maro Itoje expected to earn his 100th Test cap in international rugby.
Blair Kinghorn is still unavailable due to Toulouse reaching the Top 14 semi-finals, while Will Stuart has been tipped to feature in some form, with Farrell seemingly short on tighthead prop options.
Zander Ferguson has been ruled out for the start of the tour and has been replaced in the squad by Finlay Bealham, who seems likely to start. Tadhg Furlong, meanwhile, remains a fitness concern.
Jack van Poortvielt is unlikely to feature as he was drafted in purely for training purposes. Instead, Tomos Williams and Alex Mitchell are expected to battle it out for the starting scrum-half role.
Farrell is set to name his squad at 4pm BST.
Farrell Jnr not thinking about Lions call
Meanwhile, Owen Farrell says he’s not thinking about the possibility of a late call from his dad to join up with the Lions squad, having secured a return to Saracens.
The 33-year-old has cut short his stay in France with Racing 92, having previously announced he was stepping away from Test rugby with England after the 2023 World Cup.
However, he insists he hasn’t retired from international rugby.
The fly-half wasn’t included in the 38-man squad picked by his dad last month, but he has nevertheless left the door open for a potential late call.
“There’s nothing for me to do other than concentrate on getting myself back (at Saracens) and getting myself in the best place I possibly can do. Everything else is hypothetical,” he said.
Asked if the prospect of being drafted in by Farrell senior was a reasonable one, he added:
“I’m not thinking like that. I think if you do start thinking like that you can tie yourself in knots. All that I can do is focus on what I’ve got going on and get myself in the best place I can be.”
Ford hungry for more
PA staff
George Ford remains “hungry” for more challenges ahead as he closes in on a century of England Test appearances.
The Sale fly-half is in line to become only the seventh man to reach the century milestone when England tour Argentina and the United States next month.
With players who have been called up to the British and Irish Lions for their tour to Australia not considered for selection, both Fin Smith and Marcus Smith will not be involved for the two Tests against the Pumas or the match with the USA at Audi Field in Washington on July 19.
Ford – part of Steve Borthwick’s 36-man training squad for next weekend’s match against a France XV – played in the 2019 World Cup final and has won three Six Nations titles as well as the Premiership twice with Leicester.
The 32-year-old, though, remains determined to deliver more at the highest level.
“It (100 caps) is a milestone and one I would be very proud to achieve. To get anywhere near 100 caps for your country shows the level of consistency you need to do that,” Ford told reporters at England’s training base in Bagshot.
“Having said that, I am not looking to get to 100 and stop. It is not the end goal, 100 and I will walk away into the distance.
“I still believe that I can perform and play at this very top level and I am excited and hungry to do so.
“When or if it happens, you make your family proud – that is the biggest thing for me.
“The commitment and choices and sacrifice they have made to allow me to have the career I have had; milestones are nice for people like my family.”
Ford feels being deployed in a “game manager’s position” at the heart of the side can help eke a few more years out of a playing career.
“I think fly-half, scrum-half, it is one of the few positions where you probably see people like Johnny Sexton, Dan Biggar, going into their late 30s,” Ford said.
“You are in a game manager’s position and you are in the middle of the field. A lot of it is mental and experience, managing games and making decisions, influencing the team.
“As opposed to a winger, where physically you probably have to be at the top of your game.
“I think it’s got the potential to do that. I feel good physically, I am hungry, that is the important thing.
“I am still driven to play at this top level and perform at the top level. I am probably as motivated as I have ever been.”
