Welsh Rugby Union chief executive Abi Tierney has rejected calls for her and the rest of the WRU board to resign.
There has been a growing group of high-profile figures calling for radical change at the top of the WRU, with former Wales centre Tom Shanklin the latest - joining the likes of former Principality COO Rob Regan, GoCompare founder Hayley Parsons and Wales legend Jonathan 'Jiffy' Davies. The calls for change come as the WRU look to reduce the number of professional teams to three by 2028.
Tierney defends her position
However, despite this group of outsiders looking to force change at the top of the governing body, Tierney has defended her position.
"I can understand that people are concerned," she told ITV Wales. "But I don't think it's the right thing for the board to resign. We're facing significant structural challenges in Welsh rugby, and rugby internationally is facing challenges. We're going to have to make some hard decisions."
Tierney had previously claimed four clubs was the best way forward for Welsh rugby, before the WRU moved to the stance that it should be two. Finally, it settled on three clubs as the ideal model.
"We can have four teams if you want to have four teams," she added. "What we can't have is four competitive teams."
Revenue and sponsorship challenges
Tierney also told ITV that the WRU had exhausted every realistic opportunity to improve its own revenue stream before deciding it could sustain four competitive clubs.
She added that the "toxicity and arguments" surrounding Welsh rugby had damaged the brand and made sponsorship harder to secure - although added there was more the WRU could do.
Shanklin joins calls for change
Ex-Wales centre Shanklin has become the latest to join calls for the WRU board to step down.
The 46-year-old told ITV: "The goalposts keep moving time after time. There's no transparency, there's no trust. I think it needs to (resign). If we want to proceed and get a new vision for Welsh rugby, there has to be complete change. And that starts at the top."
He added: "Players and clubs don't know if they're going to exist or not. Why are people getting excited about coming to rugby if all the news is bad news?"
