Wales U20s scrum-half Archie Hughes has signed a new contract with the Scarlets. Having started his rugby journey with Tenby RFC juniors, Hughes burst onto the senior stage with two tries on his debut in a pre-season game against Nottingham at Parc y Scarlets two years ago.

Rhys Webb has admitted stability and security for his family meant more to him than playing for Wales at a World Cup. Webb became the latest Wales player to announce his retirement from Test rugby before the tournament.

The change from a Peugeot 207 to a Darrian T90 GTR is proving to be a very successful one for Malcolm Jones/Rhys Jones, who have quickly adapted to their new car. After finishing second on the first round of the Welsh Tarmacadam Championship, the Tour of Caerwent, the pair went one better as they won the opening round of the King of Epynt Challenge, the Dixies Challenge Rally.

After more than a year away from the international stage, Gareth Davies is sending out a very timely reminder of just why he has 67 Wales caps to his name. He hasn’t appeared for the national team since March 2022 and has missed out on the squads altogether this season. Having been a permanent fixture for the best part of a decade, it has been a new and unwanted experience, one which left him feeling despondent.

Welsh Rugby Union chairman Rob Butcher is banking on his “honest broker” reputation with the member clubs to help push through what he sees as a vital step forward for the governing body. Butcher, just coming to end of his second year as chair, has been touring the nine districts to explain the significance of the clubs backing the call from the board of directors to allow them to introduce an independent chair – “as, when and if they deem it necessary.” The resolution will be one of a package being put to the membership at Sunday’s AGM at Cardiff’s Parkgate Hotel. It will require a 75% majority on the day to pass them.

Wales continue their summer tour – flipped from Toronto and Buenos Aires to halfway down Westgate Street – on Saturday when they meet Argentina at the Principality Stadium. For scrum-half Kieran Hardy it’s another opportunity to press his claims for one of the most competitive spots on the team, as Graham Thomas reports. Kieran Hardy is determined to run the whole race against Argentina this weekend – after pulling up short on the final bend in the biggest match of his life. The last time Wales fans saw Hardy start a game was when he had to limp away from the action during the late stages of the Six Nations victory over England in February.

Gareth Davies has backed Wayne Pivac to turn things around with Wales and says the evidence for his optimism lies in the coach’s impact with the Scarlets. The Wales scrum half, fresh from another superb try to cap his 200th appearance for the Scarlets at Bath in the Heineken Champions Cup last weekend, has admitted Pivac’s men weren’t where they wanted to be when they gathered for the autumn internationals. Wales lost their first three games, to France, Scotland and Ireland, beat Georgia and then went down to England. They won their final game but didn’t really manage to finish with the anticipated flourish against Italy.

The Jersey boys will be uniting again tomorrow as three former players of the Channel Islands club – Kieran Hardy, Callum Sheedy and Will Rowlands – prepare to face Italy. Hardy has had a brief taste of Test rugby and now wants to challenge the more established names as James Dodd reports. Kieran Hardy is determined to end Wales’ 2020 campaign by proving he can be first choice scrum-half in 2021. The 25-year-old from Carmarthen made his debut a fortnight ago in Wales’ 18-0 victory over Georgia at Llanelli.

Ieuan Evans is one vote away from becoming the new chairman of the Welsh Rugby Union.  At tonight’s remote AGM, the clubs who voted him in as a national representative ahead of departing chairman Gareth Davies, learned that the former Wales record cap and try holder had beaten off John Manders for a seat on the 12-strong main board.  The vote for chairman, which is due to take place at the first meeting of the new board, will determine who becomes the most powerful figure in Welsh rugby in the most challenging of times.  

Gareth Davies has made an eleventh-hour plea to hold on to power as he seeks to retain his position as Welsh Rugby Union chairman – warning of dire consequences for the game if he’s not re-elected.

Gareth Davies has come under fire from one of the clubs he is hoping will back his bid to remain chairman of the Welsh Rugby Union. Both Davies and current chief executive Martyn Phillips have been sharply criticised by Aberavon Harlequins, even though the Division Two West Central club have agreed to pull the plug on plans for an extraordinary general meeting. The Quins – one of the 34 clubs to propose an EGM over their unhappiness with the WRU’s governance – have now rescinded that request. Instead, they plan to air their grievances at this year’s AGM in October.

Once Wales’ most capped rugby player, most prolific tryscorer and most decorated captain, Ieuan Evans was the wide man who always held centre stage. Now, he’s seeking to be at the hub of events in a different role – as a member of the Welsh Rugby Union’s council. Graham Thomas hears why. When Ieuan Evans lifted the 1994 Five Nations trophy as Wales captain, he wore the look of a man who knew the truth. His team had won the title, but they had just been beaten by England at Twickenham – a Grand Slam opportunity had been lost – and the skipper’s instinct was to reflect the mixed emotions he felt inside rather than dance to the tune of TV producers who wanted joyous celebration.