WRU to blame for Wales' rugby woes, admits Tierney

Welsh rugby boss Abi Tierney has admitted the governing body must accept "full responsibility" for the scale of Wales' decline.

The chief executive said blame for the 17-Test losing run lay firmly at the door of the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU).

Tierney was "devastated" by the record 68-14 defeat by England on Saturday and believes the players have been let down by those in charge of the game in Wales.

But she has vowed to fight on, despite revealing she has suffered personal abuse, doubled down on a commitment to four regions with a deal "imminent" and hopes to appoint a new director of rugby in the coming week before a new head coach.

Wales are in the grip of the worst run of results in their 143-year history.

But they hit a new low in the final game of a winless Six Nations with their worst home defeat and heaviest loss in championship history on Saturday.

"It was devastating, especially after there had been some green shoots with the under-20s and the performances against Ireland and Scotland," Tierney told the Scrum V podcast.

"To see how the players felt afterwards was heartbreaking. But they hadn't let us down, we had let them down.

"The blame rests with the WRU. We are responsible for making sure we put the best team out but this has been a long time in the making and it's going to take time to fix."

'Abuse'

Tierney took over the top job in Welsh rugby in January 2024 - the first female chief executive of the WRU - with an agenda to deliver cultural and economic change. The first has been a challenge, the second is proving formidable.

"It's the hardest thing I've ever done. Of course I have considered my position but I believe what we're doing will fix this and if I left, the disruption would put back the whole process," she said.

"But do I find it hard and does it hit me personally with some of the personal criticism? Yes, it is very difficult but I want to be here for the coming years."

However, Tierney appeared to express regret at not speaking publicly sooner after that final match.

Ex-WRU chairman Gareth Davies and former international John Barclay accused the union of leaving interim head coach Matt Sherratt "out to dry".

She replied: "You make decisions at the time and you learn. I didn't shy away but we had agreed a process and I stuck to it."

Wales players stand in a huddle after loss to England — Wales are 12th in the world rankings, their lowest ever position [Huw Evans Picture Agency]

Tierney will now oversee the appointment of a new director of rugby - having done the same for the women's team last month - with a permanent head coach to follow before the summer tour to Japan.

Interviews for the director of rugby post continue this week and Tierney said the union is looking for a balance of experience and youth between the two roles.

And it was clear the WRU had learned from player feedback in last autumn's review, which was questioned, at the time, by Warren Gatland.

"What came out of the autumn review is that we need a coach that can connect with younger, less experienced players," said Tierney.

"That's not necessarily driven by age but about playing style and approach as much as their track record."

Four regions pledge

Tierney spelt out a stark picture of the game in Wales, admitting "so many parts of the system are broken" and saying the product on offer to fans was "not good enough".

Former Wales captain Sam Warburton said Welsh rugby must now seriously consider cutting a region to pool the player talent into three clubs.

But Tierney responded by claiming that process would take at least two years as well as creating "distraction and pain" and believes keeping Cardiff, Dragons, Ospreys and Scarlets is a "bold" decision.

"We are absolutely committed to four regions equally, giving them all the chance to be successful and that will grow the game," she said.

"We are increasing the funding as well as improving the pathways to have enough quality players to service them and working on the commercial side.

"That strategy will be quicker, faster and have an impact sooner than moving to three."

The WRU has previously revealed its five-year ambition to build the game, including Wales breaking into the top five team in the world by 2029.

It has also previously announced funding to the regions will rise this July - from the current £4.5m each - with incremental rises over the next three years to £6.5m each as well as wiping some of the regions' debts.

But Welsh rugby is still waiting for that deal to be signed off.

"It has taken longer than I expected but even if we agreed the deal in October, the extra money wouldn't come until July," said Tierney.

"We've needed to take time to get this right. We could have imposed the agreement but the relationship [with the regions] is important. We need to trust each other."

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