The answer is not our place in the men’s or women’s World rankings, not our win ratio or our points or try records, nor our tackling stats, metres made or tickets sold, but it is what our sport means to our people around the globe – this is ‘why’ the Welsh Rugby Union exists.
We exist because, in Wales, men’s, women’s, girls’ and boys’ rugby matters.
Because nowhere else in the world do they take wins, losses, draws, trophies, triple crowns, Grand Slams, last-gasp wins, valiant defeats, stolen matches and hard-fought victories more seriously than we do in Wales.
Rugby matters to the Welsh like nothing else.
That’s why Principality Stadium will be full to its rafters this afternoon for the opening round of the 2024 Championship against Scotland. It is why a record crowd will inevitably turn-out to watch Wales Women take on Italy in their first stand-alone fixture at our national ground on 27th April.
That’s what you remember when you watch ‘Full Contact’, in a campaign where we won one game, against Italy, but set ourselves up for a run into the quarter-finals of the World Cup – you remember how it felt. How it feels, to hope. To dream.
WRU CEO Abi Tierney watches the Captains run
The same occurred to me during ‘Gatland a’i Garfan’ the most current representation of our Wales senior men’s squad which aired again over the weekend on S4C, bringing us right up to date with where we are, what we have achieved, where this Wales team is in the international order.
Seeing a new and developing Warren Gatland side top their group at the 2023 Rugby World Cup in France helped us all relive recent halcyon days, when semi-finals beckoned. We didn’t’ make it, but we were allowed to dream and with each try, conversion, penalty, crunching tackle and dazzling run that dream became more of a reality.
Reminiscing about days gone by has the same effect, whatever the decade. When you remember Paul Thorburn kicking the leather of the ball to silence Scottish supporters with a record 70-yard penalty almost 39 years ago to the day in Cardiff, you remember it vividly because of how much it mattered.
Because it kept a dream alive.
We will all be dreaming again this afternoon, just as we dream, at the WRU, about releasing the full potential of Welsh rugby.
These things are easy to say, but it is my job to make them a reality. To make our dreams come true.
This is why we are here. This is why I am here. Because the nation cares so much. This is the greatest strength we have as a sporting governing body. Arguably, the greatest strength we have as a country is that we care so much about each other and rugby embodies this emotion.
We care passionately. We show it in different ways. We may sing our hearts out at anthem time in the congregational gathering that happens at our men’s and women’s international matches.
We may complain and protest and argue and grumble about what is wrong with our game and we may roll our sleeves up and lace up our boots and do what we can to improve it. We may buy tickets, invest in our clubs, in our regions, directly in our national game. We may feign disinterest and cast a cursory, nonchalant glance at the current scores, longing for times past. But we do all of these things because we care.
I promise Wales one thing. I care too and today, win, lose or draw, we will all join together, care together.
This will be the life-force which will continue to bring success to our men’s and women’s national teams, our regions, our clubs… and pride to our country.
We wish the entire Welsh rugby family a fruitful, passionate and positive day today, as we look to a future where dreams can come true.
Abi Tierney
WRU Group CEO
