Welsh Rugby Chief Executive Abi Tierney Says WRU To Blame For Wales’ Struggles

Welsh rugby boss Abi Tierney has conceded that the WRU must take ‘full responsibility’ for Wales’ recent woes.

Chief executive Tierney said the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) is wholly to blame for Wales’ record-breaking losing run of 17 test matches.

She said the 68-14 record defeat to England in Cardiff last weekend was ‘devastating’ and that senior figures have let players down.

But despite suffering personal abuse, she has vowed to fight on in a heartfelt open letter to Welsh ers.

Wales have never been in such a bad state during their 143-year history.

Their 17th straight defeat also marked Wales’ biggest-ever home defeat and record Six Nations loss.

Speaking after the game, Tierney told BBC Scrum V: “It was devastating, especially after there had been some green shoots with the under-20s and the performances against Ireland and Scotland.

“To see how the players felt afterwards was heartbreaking. But they hadn’t let us down, we had let them down.

“The blame rests with the WRU. We are responsible for making sure we put the best team out but this has been a long time in the making and it’s going to take time to fix.”

Abi Tierney Says WRU Job Has Come With ‘Abuse’

Since taking the reigns at the WRU in January 2024, Tierney has been faced with plenty of challenges.

She said: “It’s the hardest thing I’ve ever done. Of course, I have considered my position but I believe what we’re doing will fix this and if I left, the disruption would put back the whole process.

“But do I find it hard and does it hit me personally with some of the personal criticism? Yes, it is very difficult but I want to be here for the coming years.”

After the loss to England, the WRU were accused by some of leaving interim head coach Matt Sherratt ‘out to dry’.

On that topic, Tierney added: “You make decisions at the time and you learn. I didn’t shy away but we had agreed a process and I stuck to it.”

Wales will now look to appoint a new director of rugby and permanent head coach ahead of this summer’s tour to Japan.

Interviews are underway, with Tierney claiming the WRU is looking to balance youth and experience.

“What came out of the autumn review is that we need a coach that can connect with younger, less experienced players,” said Tierney.

“That’s not necessarily driven by age but about playing style and approach as much as their track record.”

Welsh Rugby Commits To Keeping Four Regions

There has been much discussion recently about the state of professional rugby in Wales.

Former Welsh captain Sam Warburton has advocated for cutting the number of professional regions to three in order to concentrate talent and resources more narrowly.

But Tierney has rejected this idea. While she its that ‘many parts of the system are broken’, she has committed to keeping all four regions.

Tierney said: “We are absolutely committed to four regions equally, giving them all the chance to be successful and that will grow the game.

“We are increasing the funding as well as improving the pathways to have enough quality players to service them and working on the commercial side.

“That strategy will be quicker, faster and have an impact sooner than moving to three.”

Abi Tierney and the WRU have previously shared a five-year plan to return Wales to the top five of the World Rankings by 2029.

Funding for the regions is also set to increase from July, up to £6.5m each from £4.5m over the next three seasons. But that deal has not yet been signed off.

“It has taken longer than I expected but even if we agreed the deal in October, the extra money wouldn’t come until July,” said Tierney.

“We’ve needed to take time to get this right. We could have imposed the agreement but the relationship [with the regions] is important. We need to trust each other.”