‘We have to diversify. We’re trying different forms of the game to get people into rugby’
There’s a debate raging around the world about the future of rugby union with Wales among the countries having to address the challenges it faces from other sports and activities.
Former Wales captain Ryan Jones was appointed the WRU’s head of rugby participation 13 months ago and is the man charged with tackling them.
And he acknowledged: “We’ve got some issues. They’re no different to any rugby governing body. For us it’s mainly about choice – that’s our biggest barrier.
“People now have more choice than ever and some of the socio and economic issues are outside of our control. We’re just trying to give more people a rugby opportunity.
“We’re a body who it’s easy to throw stones at, but we’re out there and actively trying to engage people in different ways.
“We have to diversify and we’re trying different forms of the game to bring people into rugby. We’re saying it’s OK to play touch, to play sevens, or be a volunteer or referee.
“There is lots to do in all of our key areas. It’s about ticking those off one at a time and it’s about coming back to the fact that we are a union of clubs. We’re trying desperately to do that.
“For some they won’t want to play 15-a-side and that’s OK. By offering different forms of rugby we’re hoping they will then take up the transition to the full game. The reality is only time will tell.
“We want people to have a lifetime involvement in rugby, however they choose to have it. That’s our challenge.
“People will drift in and out. We can’t stop that, but when they choose to be involved we need to have softer entry points to keep them interested.
“You can have an amazing experience in Welsh rugby, without playing for Wales. That’s what we’re trying to tell people.
“Any kid who picks up a rugby ball isn’t necessarily going to play at the Principality Stadium. We want to celebrate every aspect of our game and get people involved.
“It’s a bit of a myth, the football versus rugby thing. There are so many more things for people to be involved in; cycling, triathlon, crossfit and other things.
“Then there’s inactivity which is a problem. We have the same number of kids choosing between lots of different sports. We’re working with football in some districts so we can remove the barriers.
“For example we’re looking at changing kick-off times so they don’t clash.
“Alternative forms of football, like five-a-side are thriving, so we have to look at that and try and see if we have success in rugby.”
According to figures published last year by global governing body World Rugby there were 83,120 registered rugby players in Wales in a population of just over three million, although the number actively playing is likely to be significantly less.
Meanwhile a study carried out by academics from Swansea and Brighton universities, and the WRU, and published last month, showed junior rugby players in Wales are clocking up an average of 2,000 hours training between the ages of six and 15.
But the picture is bleak in pockets of the country where some district and National League clubs have been forced to fold because of a lack of players, and others withdraw from competition on a temporary basis.
According to figures published Down Under last week, rugby union in Australia isn’t simply suffering from being the so-called fourth most popular sport in Australia behind Rugby League, Australian Rules football and football itself but is in danger of dying out because of collapsing participation levels.
Figures published by research company Roy Morgan and highlighted by the Aussie-based businessinsider.com website claimed arguably the proudest sporting country of all has just 55,000 people actively playing union at present out of a population of 24.5m.
It alleged a 63% drop in participation from 148,000 players since 2001 when the Wallabies were World Cup holders and beat Graham Henry’s Lions 2-1, now listing it as only the 26th most popular sport in the country.
But the Australian Rugby Union has rejected the research findings, claiming its own data and a report published by the Australian Sports Commission in December last year did not support them.
In figures set to be published in the ARU’s 2016 annual report, last year 271,528 participants were involved in more than five games or structured sessions (in competitions and non-competition programs), reflecting an increase of 1.5% or 4,065 new participants year-on-year.
There was, however, a marginal 0.8% decline in club XVs participaCHRIS