38-602: The Snelling Sevens (also known as the Snelling Seven-a-Side Trophy and originally known as the Welsh Seven-a-Side Tournament ) was an annual Welsh Rugby Union sevens competition that ran from 1954 until 1995. The tournament was inaugurated in 1954 and the trophy presented by the Chairman of Newport Athletic Club, Reg Snelling, after whom the competition is named. The competition took place over
76-759: A 13-day release facility for squad training before the Six Nations and Autumn series games. The new agreement does state that the national team head coach, currently Warren Gatland , will be the sole person to decide who gets a National Dual Contract, with a long-term aim of only selecting players based in Wales. The limit on foreign players in Regional squads has been capped at a maximum of six while each Region will be allowed two so-called time serving players who will be available for Welsh selection after three years residency (rising to five years, effective from 31 December 2020). In 2008
114-501: A 133-page review was completed highlighting "bullying and misogyny" in the WRU. A three-person chair of Dame Anne Rafferty , Quentin Smith and Maggie Alphonsi was appointed for an investigation. The review involved conducting 50 interviews with groups or individuals, and it assembled a 5,000-page document of evidence, the findings were the WRU was suffering a general "failure of governance". However,
152-568: A Welsh rugby union team which plays in the Welsh Premiership . The club play at St Helen's Rugby and Cricket Ground in Swansea and are also known as The Whites, in reference to their home kit colours. The club was founded in 1872 as an association football team, switching to the rugby code in 1874, and in 1881 it became one of the eleven founder clubs of the Welsh Rugby Union . In
190-585: A bonus point for Aberavon sent Swansea into the SWALEC Championship. This provoked a complete revamp of the club with Stephen Hughes taking the position of Chairman, Keith Colclough as Managing Director and Richard Lancaster leading a coaching team of former players including Rhodri Jones, Chris Loader and Ben Lewis. In their first season Swansea missed out on promotion back to the Premiership, finishing in second place overall, but were consequently promoted in
228-479: A notable 6–6 draw was achieved against New Zealand in 1953 followed by a 9–8 victory against Australia in 1966. It was not until the club's centenary season in 1973/74, however, that the club became Merit Table Champions. Swansea achieved further success as club champions in 1979/80, 1980/81, 1982/83 as well as Welsh cup winners in 1978. Players during this period included Clem Thomas, Billy Williams , Dewi Bebb, Mervyn Davies, Geoff Wheel, David Richards and Mark Wyatt,
266-502: A single day, and was originally a straightforward knockout tournament between 16 teams, with the initial draw taking place prior to the match day. The teams invited were the premier South Wales teams, but occasionally if a team was on tour at the time clubs were invited from other areas, including English teams such as Leicester and Bath. Ebbw Vale won the tournament in 1958. The squad included G Powell, M Williams, F Matthews, R Morgan, D Ackerman, D Barrett, R Evans, K Cameron, J Pugh. 1967 saw
304-508: Is appropriate for the WRU to receive any further public money until these changes are made. We need certainty that women are safe from horrific misogyny in rugby, as well as across society." Ieuan Evans is set to answer questions on the matter at the Senedd on 2 February 2023 from the Senedd's Culture, Communications, Welsh Language, Sport, and International Relations Committee. As of November 2023,
342-589: Is that there is no written evidence, just oral repetition. On 12 March 1881, eleven clubs met in the Castle Hotel, Neath to form what would be accepted as a Welsh rugby union. After a humiliating defeat in the first Wales international rugby game, the Neath meeting was organised by Mullock to form a union that could organise regular international matches. The founding clubs of the Welsh Football Union (WFU), as it
380-652: The Ospreys . As a result, Swansea RFC returned to being an amateur team. Since the change to regional rugby Several players have played for Swansea RFC, as well Ospreys and Wales including Alun Wyn Jones, Ryan Jones, Scott Baldwin, Nicky Smith, Matthew Morgan, Eli Walker, Gavin Henson and Dan Biggar. In 2014 the All Whites were relegated from the Welsh Premier league on the final day of the season when despite beating Neath at St Helens,
418-547: The Pro14 , European Professional Club Rugby ( Champions Cup and Challenge Cup ) and Anglo-Welsh Cup competitions. Each region may call up players from a set of club teams within their area. These top club sides play in the 14-strong Welsh Premier Division . In August 2008 WRU chief Roger Lewis confirmed that the body was looking at a proposal to reinstate a fifth Welsh region, based in North Wales. Lewis admitted that he regretted
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#1733084674881456-523: The Rugby Football Union and the Welsh Rugby Union for allegedly failing to put in place reasonable measures to protect the health and safety of players. This alleged failure is said to have caused disorders such as motor neurone disease , early onset dementia , chronic traumatic encephalopathy , epilepsy and Parkinson's disease . Swansea RFC Swansea Rugby Football Club is
494-564: The Welsh Language Society wrote to the WRU outlining a "lack of commitment to the Welsh language " and later held meetings to discuss the matter. In a statement to BBC Wales, a WRU spokesman said that it was reviewing its website and would be having more Welsh on the site. The current logo of the Welsh Rugby Union is based on the Prince of Wales's feathers . There have been multiple calls for
532-453: The 15/16 season along with Merthyr, RGC 1404 and Bargoed. Swansea struggled to adapt to the Premiership in their first two seasons back at the top flight although despite a crippling injury list, the 17/18 season showed much promise with the side recording five wins, a draw and 10 losing bonus points for losing the game within 7 points. The 2018/19 season is a hugely important season for the club with potentially five clubs being relegated from
570-540: The European Cup. This period also included disputes with the Welsh Rugby Union over the way the league structure was being run in Wales following rugby union's move to being a professional game, which culminated in the club's boycott of the 1998/99 league season, in what was referred to as the rebel season . The 2003/04 season has seen a significant change with the introduction of regional rugby in Wales. Swansea Rugby Football Club Ltd, alongside Neath RFC are co-owners of
608-626: The WRU to use a logo "more relevant to Wales" as the feathers are associated by some with the "English crown". Pro-independence group YesCymru created mock-up WRU logos using a leek, daffodil and harp instead of the three feathers. Using a Welsh dragon has also been proposed. The union's patron is Prince William , the current Prince of Wales . The naming of the Prince William Cup caused controversy in Wales in 2007, with petitions receiving more than 1,000 signatures calling for it to be named after
646-490: The Welsh Premiership in order for the league to contain 12 teams in the 19/20 season. The coaching team of Richard Lancaster , Hugh Gustafson , Ben Lewis , Nick Roberts and Liam Carpener-Jones are currently preparing a squad consisting of many of the 17/18 squad along with new additions which are being announced on the club website regularly. Swansea RFC defeated New Zealand 11–3 on Saturday 28 September 1935, becoming
684-495: The Welsh representatives at the formal signing of the union in 1887. It was not until 1934 that the current name, the Welsh Rugby Union, was adopted. The WRU are responsible for the running of Welsh rugby, including 320 member clubs, the Welsh national team and National Leagues and Cups. The Welsh Rugby Union has a major role in the development of coaches, referees and players throughout all ages for both men and women. They also own
722-418: The club's record points scorer with 2,740 points scored between 1976/77 and 1991/92. The 1990s saw success for the club, including being league champions on 4 occasions (1991/92, 1993/94, 1997/98 and 2000/01) and Welsh cup winners in 1995 and 1999. A memorable 21–6 victory was recorded over then World champions Australia at St Helens on 4 November 1992. In season 1995/96 Swansea reached the semi-final stage of
760-452: The country of Wales , recognised by the sport's international governing body, World Rugby . The WRU is responsible for the running of rugby in Wales, overseeing 320 member clubs, the Welsh national team and National Leagues and Cups. The WRU is headed by the President ( Terry Cobner ), chairman (Richard Collier-Keywood) and CEO ( Abi Tierney ). The roots of the Welsh Rugby Union lay in
798-605: The creation of the South Wales Football Union (SWFU) in September 1875; formed, "...with the intention of playing matches with the principal clubs in the West of England and the neighbourhood. The rugby rules will be the code adopted. The South Wales Football Club was superseded in 1878 by the South Wales Football Union in an attempt to bring greater regulation to the sport and to select representatives from club sides to represent
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#1733084674881836-645: The decision in 2004 to close down Celtic Warriors . In September 2008 a new North Wales Rugby development team was announced, likely to be based in Wrexham ; ultimately, the team was launched as RGC 1404 , and was to be based in Colwyn Bay instead of Wrexham. In the same month Llanelli Scarlets changed their name to simply Scarlets , believing the new name would better represent their region beyond Llanelli . The current Rugby Services Agreement (or RSA) has been in place since 28 August 2014, and will be in place between
874-601: The early twentieth century Swansea RFC was an extremely successful club. For four consecutive seasons Swansea were the unofficial Welsh champions from the 1898–99 season through to 1901/02, coinciding with the heyday of Swansea's first star player Billy Bancroft . Under the captaincy of Frank Gordon the team would later go on a 22-month unbeaten run, from December 1903 through to October 1905. During this period Swansea appeared to be under-represented at international level. Gordon himself went uncapped throughout his entire career, and apart from Billy Trew , Dick Jones and Dicky Owen ,
912-747: The first ever club side to beat the All Blacks. The victory also made them the first club team to beat all three of the major touring teams to Britain; they had previously beaten Australia in 1908 and South Africa in 1912. In November 1992, Swansea RFC defeated world champions Australia 21–6, when Australia played their first match of their Welsh Tour. Welsh Premier Division champions in: Welsh Cup champions in: Whitbread Merit Table champions in: Snelling Sevens champions in: Note: Flags indicate national union under World Rugby eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-World Rugby nationality. The following former players were selected for
950-443: The home of Welsh rugby union, the 74,500 capacity Millennium Stadium , Cardiff, "an icon of the modern Wales". After the national team the next highest level of representation in Wales is the four regions based around top club sides, but representing a larger area. These regions came into being in 2003 when the WRU elected to reduce the current top tier of Welsh professional rugby union from nine clubs into five regions modelled on
988-591: The international game. The SWFU though were poorly organised, and although they arranged fixtures between a South Wales team and various English clubs, they were often victims of fixture-clashes and were accused of lacking energy. In 1880, Richard Mullock , secretary of the Newport Athletic Club, decided to take matters into his own hands and without the backing of the SWFU organised an international match against England . The match took place on 19 February 1881, and
1026-580: The introduction of the Bill Everson Award for the Man of the Tournament Trophy. In 1979, the competition changed format from a purely knockout tournament to a pool system with four groups of four teams followed by knockout rounds. Despite the competition's popularity from the 1950s to the 1970s, crowds diminished from 50,000 at its peak to around 5,000 by the 1980s and early 1990s. In 1995, the competition
1064-521: The late Ray Gravell instead. In January 2023, a BBC Wales investigation included multiple former WRU employees who made allegations of a "toxic culture" in the workplace of the WRU. Later that week, Steve Phillips resigned as the chief executive officer of the WRU and was replaced by Nigel Walker . WRU chair Ieuan Evans said that an external taskforce would be established to deal with the allegations. In response to this news, Plaid Cymru Senedd member, Heledd Fychan said: "Steve Phillips' position
1102-473: The new RSA. The new agreement also allows players to be offered a National Dual Contract (NDC), which means the union will pay 60% of a NDC player's salary and their region 40%. They also become available for all Welsh senior matches, despite if the match falls outside World Rugby 's international release windows in June and November. The WRU retained the right to play up to 13 senior international games each year with
1140-441: The only other internationals in the senior team were forward Sid Bevan (1 cap), wing Jowett (1 cap) and outside-half Phil Hopkins (4 caps). Trew (29 caps) was an outstanding centre who was accepted as one of the most important players in the evolution of Welsh rugby, while Dicky Owen (35 caps), although only 5-foot 4 inches tall, was an incredible tactician. The immediate post war years brought only limited success, although
1178-451: The organised approach of the report has been noted as being too political for rugby union. After the publication of the findings of the report, the WRU was forced to change the personnel on an executive level in the WRU, involving the appointment of a first female Chief Executive, Abi Tierney , and Richard Collier-Keywood as the new WRU chair. Position no longer exists In December 2023 a group of 295 former rugby players sued World Rugby ,
Snelling Sevens - Misplaced Pages Continue
1216-602: The presence of the club, or if Neath RFC actually did not attend. The fact that two of the main committee members of the SWFU, John Llewellyn and Sam Clark were Neath men, and the creation of the WFU disbanded their union, is generally accepted as the reason for the absence of a Neath representative. The WRU was a founding member of the International Rugby Football Board, now known as World Rugby , in 1886 with Scotland and Ireland , with Mullock and Horace Lyne
1254-580: The successful Irish provinces and the Super Rugby franchises in South Africa, Australia and New Zealand . The WRU had hoped to reduce the teams to four regions but Cardiff and Llanelli successfully argued for stand-alone status. After one year the Celtic Warriors region was closed down and the four surviving regional clubs are Cardiff Blues , Scarlets , Ospreys and Newport Gwent Dragons . They play in
1292-531: The union and the four Welsh regions ( Cardiff Blues , Newport Gwent Dragons , Ospreys and Scarlets ) for six years. The RSA delivers £8.7million a year to the Regions guaranteed to be spent on Welsh qualified players with a complex matrix of funding, also guaranteeing a further £3.6million in loan facilities from the WRU repayable during the term of the RSA. Each Region also receives a one-off £500,000 payment on signature of
1330-421: Was originally known, were Swansea C & FC , Pontypool RFC , Newport RFC , Merthyr RFC , Llanelli RFC , Bangor RFC , Brecon RFC , Cardiff RFC , Lampeter RFC , Llandovery RFC and Llandeilo RFC . Strangely the oldest rugby club in Wales, Neath RFC are not recorded as being present, even though the meeting took place in the town of Neath. It is unknown if this was an oversight by the committee to record
1368-404: Was renamed as the "Worthington Sevens", but it was decided that, due to the congested timetables of the clubs involved, the tournament should cease to be held. The trophy was awarded permanently to Newport as the most successful club in the competition's history. Welsh Rugby Union The Welsh Rugby Union ( WRU ; Welsh : Undeb Rygbi Cymru ) is the governing body of rugby union in
1406-462: Was untenable, and I welcome today's news that he has stepped aside. It is the right action to take after the abject failure of the WRU to date to deal with very serious allegations of misogyny and sexism that were seemingly known to him and others. "Nigel Walker's appointment as Acting CEO must signal the beginning and not the end of the significant structural and cultural changes needed at the WRU. "The Welsh Government should now consider whether it
1444-654: Was won by England seven goals, one dropped goal and six tries to nil. This heavy defeat lay the seeds for further reforms that would lead to the creation of the WRU. Currently, there is confusion regarding the official date of creation of the Welsh Rugby Union. In March 1880 nine teams supposedly met at the Tenby Hotel, Swansea with the intent of creating a new union. These teams are thought to have been, Cardiff RFC , Chepstow RFC , Haverfordwest RFC , Llandaff RFC , Llanelli RFC , Neath RFC , Newport RFC , Pontypridd RFC and Swansea RFC . The issue with accepting this meeting
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