Newly-elected Welsh Rugby Union council member Dai Rees believes the sport's future depends on retaining young players, modernising coaching and strengthening the pathway between junior, community and elite rugby.
Rees elected to WRU council
Rees was elected to the WRU council in place of Anthony Buchanan, who stood down after losing confidence in the WRU leadership. Unlike WRU executives, council members serve on a voluntary basis, helping shape strategy while also acting as a bridge between the union and the grassroots game.
"My role is to support strategy and the full-time staff within the union," Rees told WalesOnline. "When they have concepts and ideas it is to bring reality and actual feedback from within the community game and the transition game."
Focus on player retention, not just professional game
Despite headlines surrounding Wales' struggles on the field and the proposed reduction of professional clubs from four to three, Rees insists the biggest issues lie elsewhere. "The participation in rugby in general is declining," he said. "You have hotspots or pinch points. Those pinch points are non-contact to contact, U16s to U18s and U18s to senior rugby."
Rees pointed to the 14-18 and 18-23 age groups as critical phases showing the biggest drop-offs in every nation. "Modern kids have so many different options, whether that's other sports, careers or social lives. We have to make rugby the highlight of their week."
Pathways and coach development
Rees believes Welsh rugby must rethink how it supports players during crucial years and improve coach development. "The data collection that is being done now will hopefully remain in the union for years to come and be built on. It's the first system we've had in over 100 years where clubs are not just passionate but having to make decisions and become accountable for how they act."
He added: "There's a lot of work to be done in player pathways and coach development between 14-18 and 18-23."
Cultural shift needed
Rees argued that Welsh rugby culture must change to retain players. "When I played I was never told what I was good at, just what I was doing wrong. But that's our culture. We've got to try to flip our culture around."
He said modern players (Gen-Z) want different things from rugby and life. "If we've got older coaches like me who still coach how we were coached, you'll push people away from the game. They aren't pain-driven anymore, shouting in the mud. They like a bit of love and emotional intelligence."
Drop-out risk after elite pathways
Rees highlighted that players who miss out on professional contracts often leave the game entirely. "What's happening at the moment is if they don't make it, a high percentage just drop out of the game completely. So that experience they've had of maybe playing age-grade rugby or U20s or being in a regional academy, a lot of those say, 'Well, I haven't made it, so I don't want to go back and play for Monmouth or Cross Keys.' They drop out of the game."
He stressed the need to support all players, not just those selected for elite pathways. "If you look at the regional age-grade competition where 36 boys get together at each region... don't worry about the four that have been picked for the senior academy, what are we doing with the other 32?"
Rees said the rebuild of Welsh rugby starts in clubs, on cold winter training nights and in the relationships that determine whether the next generation stays in the game or walks away.
