Jonathan Davies and Scott Baldwin believe the Indigo Academy can help develop the next generation of Wales internationals and play its part in getting Welsh rugby back among the world's superpowers.
The former Wales internationals are part of the team behind the Indigo Academy, an ambitious new player-development programme designed to give youngsters aged 12 to 15 the skills, knowledge and habits they need to progress through the game.
Concerns Over the Current Pathway
"I've voiced my concerns since retiring about the pathway system and that being the key to getting Wales back to being one of world rugby's superpowers," Davies tells WalesOnline.
"From my experiences the pathway started at quite an early age. Those opportunities helped develop my understanding of what was required if I wanted to be a professional rugby player. The national academy is looking to come in at 16."
The WRU has talked about World Cup cycles and the 16-17 and getting young players ready. "I think us as a group with the Indigo academy, we are looking to enhance that World Cup cycle at a younger age. We have to develop the talent as well as we can and make sure they develop."
"I think that's the age range. Foundations can be laid for when the national academy comes into effect and these 16 year-olds go into the academy there's a base and a foundation of knowledge, game understanding and physical development that will act as a launchpad for that generation to become world-class players. At the moment we are playing catch-up."
Welsh rugby is enduring its worst spell since the game turned professional, with a chronic lack of investment and failings in the pathway underpinning Wales' struggles in recent years.
A Critical Stage for Welsh Rugby
Former Wales and British & Irish Lions centre Davies insists that must change if Wales are to drag themselves out of the doldrums. "We are at a critical stage," he told WalesOnline.
"I don't want to build it up bigger than it is but if we keep going on the way we are then Welsh rugby will remain tier two which is where it is at the moment. We don't want that. We want Welsh rugby to be back where it deserves to be and that's at the very top. A lot of work has to be done. This aligned vision with the Indigo group, we'd like to think we can do a lot of games."
The Welsh Rugby Union has pledged £28 million over the next five years to rebuild its player pathway, including the return of a national academy. But the Indigo Group has ambitious plans to aid both the regions and the WRU, with a new academy system designed to transform the development of Welsh players.
The Indigo academy is intended to provide an additional layer of development for players aged 12 to 15 before they potentially reach the regional academies and national academy structure at 16. Players will remain with their schools and community clubs while gaining access to additional coaching, skills work, physical development and player support through a network of regional hubs.
High-level former internationals are on board with the likes of Davies, Baldwin, James Hook and Taulupe Faletau among a raft of quality individuals attached to the project.
Regional Hubs and Development Plans
"Each region will have a hub," said Davies, who also coaches at Christ College, Brecon. "Down west we are looking at a couple of venues. I'm probably looking at the best demographic in terms of travel and space. I want the right facility to work with everyone in the area. It's just little hubs like that. We are looking at playing once a month on a Friday and looking at a representative East versus West game. This is all still at the drawing board stage."
"It is around having a connection point," former Wales hooker Baldwin adds, who is also head coach of Bridgend RFC. "If Jon is looking after the Scarlets region and the district per se under it he oversees that and has leads then that will assist the sessions. Jon will be overseeing it, session planning, season structure and development plans for players. There's a bit of CPD for coaches around it as well so we will be inviting parents and coaching down to be a part of it. It is about understanding what will make the players get better."
Costs are still being finalised but it is expected to cost between £30-£40 per month for each player.
The group is also developing the Indigo App, which it says will create commercial benefits for families and generate new investment into grassroots rugby. It also plans to establish the Indigo Rugby Benevolent Trust to help families facing financial difficulties with academy membership, kit, equipment, travel and representative opportunities which will also pay for those who can't afford it.
Physical Development and Skill Levels
Professional rugby places an enormous premium on size, and the Indigo Group recognise that physical development will remain important. "You can have the biggest and fastest kid at 12 years old who has been let down by us because their community club say give him the ball and he'll run through everyone to score a try," said Baldwin.
"Now short-term success is brilliant for that club and that player but then they'll get to 17-18 when they start training and playing against peers who are as athletic as them, as big as them and as physical as them. All of a sudden their skillset doesn't match up their skill profile."
"In New Zealand, school would play age and club would play weight. There's no surprise that their skill levels are so high at a young age, so no matter how big you are you catch pass is very good. Their front-five skillset is the best in the world because it has been embedded in them from a young age. In Wales we are playing catch up in terms of the skill levels. It's hard to do at a later age."
"I also think it is important to understand that this is a pathway and there is going to be a selection process around it but actually it is not about creating the next Wales international now, it is about raising the bar from the bottom up so that each player improves and we are in a better place around it. It is about instilling good behaviours and habits into these players from a young age which will not just transfer to their rugby but their lives."
Davies is quick to highlight the skill sets of New Zealand's tight five and insists the Indigo Academy will place a strong emphasis on developing those same fundamentals. "You look at the super powers of world rugby. New Zealand for a number of years are always drilling at those basics," he said.
"The reason New Zealand were that good is because their forwards were upskilled to a level where they were comfortable moving the ball. There's a book called Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell and he talks about the 10,000-hour rule to master something. If we can get these young boys playing at 12-15 understanding that that practice and building those habits will essentially create a skill level that is far better. They'll already be ahead of the game. We constantly seem to be trying to catch up with everyone in rugby."
Player Identification and Selection
So, how will players be identified and selected? "There will be a trial to select the players," said Baldwin. "It is almost a continuation of the district that's in place at U11s. Jon would have been in a pathway where there was U11s, U12s, U13s, U14s, U15s and U16s whereas now for some reason you've got U11s district and then it starts again at 15."
"There's a three to four-year window there where these players aren't getting exposed to the level they had at U11s. We are going to look to mirror where it is now at U11s and upwards because that's where the catchment is. Someone spoke around roughly 13 players transitioned from district U15s to Ospreys east and west per district. If we can get the same if not more through that natural pathway coming in but the level of player and understanding is higher because they've had that exposure from that three-year gap we are missing at the moment."
"I don't know what evidence there is to say it doesn't benefit them but in what other aspect of life would you choose to have something, cut three years off it and expect to pick up where you left off in three years? It is madness."
Baldwin hopes it can mirror the pathway Wales' golden generation took to reach the top. "You look at the golden generation they had a pathway from 11-16," he added. "The evidence was there that that generation had the pathway we are speaking about. There's little things around speaking to someone at one of the regions around there's not many nines coming through at that age group into U15s."
"Well, the person I was speaking to at the union didn't know that the nines can't run until they get to U12s, they can just pass from the base. So, why would you put a good player at scrum-half where all he or she can do is pass from the base? They won't want to play there. You think about that golden generation with Mike Phillips, Lloyd Williams, Rhys Webb and Gareth Davies. Their point of difference was their ability to see space and exploit it but if that rule was in place back then would they still want to be nines? I don't know."
"It is about how do we streamline it but there are a lot of people on the ground in the community game who could add a lot of value to that as well because they've been through it for a long time."
Looking Ahead to 2035
The WRU has chosen not to endorse the Indigo Academy, citing its pay-to-play model and concerns that it does not place enough emphasis on the women's game. But the Indigo Academy is also working on creating a system that develops female players.
Davies and Baldwin remain confident the academy can succeed and play a key role in developing future Wales internationals. "We would love to have graduates from this Indigo academy playing for Wales in the World Cup cycle in 2035," said Davies.
"The union have stated that World Cup cycles there from U12s to U15s is irrelevant and they don't see an importance in that bracket. But with Indigo we feel it is a key stage of development to create that launchpad. The amount of players that played district rugby in my generation who learnt a lot from rugby at that age was crucial. We think it is a key part and that's what we have started this. We are trying to help the union in terms of getting it set up for them when they don't seem to have the resources for it."
While it is not all about the international game they are aiming to develop players for the 2035 Rugby World Cup. "The 2035 World Cup sounds like a lifetime away but it is not," said Baldwin. "The 2035 World Cup is three World Cup cycles away. When you look at it in World Cup cycles it is not a massive amount of time so how do we accelerate the skillset development and IQ development because the reality is kids aren't watching as much rugby as they used to. The natural outcome will be we will produce those players."
"The biggest thing for me is we are building from the bottom up. I'd like to think in five, six or seven years when these players are in senior rugby the base level of these players will be higher. The players who then go back to their clubs the base level will be higher than it is now."
If the Indigo Academy can raise the standard of players coming through Welsh rugby, the hope is that in 2035 Wales will not just have a new generation of internationals, but a generation capable of taking the country back to where Davies and Baldwin believe it belongs at the very top of world rugby.
