By David Williams
Ieuan Evans is one vote away from becoming the new chairman of the Welsh Rugby Union.
After tonight’s remote AGM, it emerged that the former Wales record cap and try holder – who was voted in by the clubs as a national representative ahead of departing chairman Gareth Davies – 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.
While Evans’ playing credentials put him head and shoulders above everyone else among the dozen powerbrokers on the rugby front, it will be his business and management acumen that will be more critical.
His likely opponent in the race to replace Davies for the next three years is the current chair of the WRU council, Rob Butcher.
The former Bargoed captain and secretary, who is still serving his club as auditor, celebrated his 70th birthday this month and is a retired schoolteacher.
Butcher is a current member of the board and is joined in running the game by other familiar faces in independent directors Aileen Richards and Tim Griffin, Gordon Eynon, Hywel Roberts, Chris Morgan and David Young.
The independent chair of the Professional Rugby Board, Amanda Blanc, also sits on the board, along with former Wales women’s captain, Liza Burgess, and the interim CEO, Steve Phillips.
As well as Evans, three former board members – Young, Thomas and Morgan – regained their seats.
Now, they all have to decide who will lead Welsh rugby forward after six years of Gareth Davies and Martyn Phillips at the helm as chairman and CEO. They are both now departing.
Phillips delivered his final address at the AGM having hinted in the annual report that he still hopes to serve the WRU in the future.
“Five years at the WRU, serving on the boards of Six Nations, PRO14, the British & Irish Lions and working with World Rugby means I have acquired a great deal of rugby knowledge,” said Phillips.
“Whilst I took the decision to step away before the Rugby World Cup it has been a continued privilege to have been able to stay on to help manage the Covid-19 challenge. I hope that I can put this knowledge and the rugby relationships I have built to use for the WRU in some capacity in the future.”
Plans to lobby the clubs for a change to the constitution to create a post for an independent chairman of the board of directors failed to materialise and it will be interesting to see if it arises in the future.
Phillips’ name was linked with that post, but he could still throw his hat into the ring for one of the two independent director roles when they come up next year.
That would give him a route back to a seat on the board, although he could find opposition to that plan.
As for Davies, he had hoped to stand for a third term of three-years as a national representative, and had invited the clubs and his fellow board members to change the rules to allow him to remain beyond the agreed six-year maximum term of service for a chairman.
His hope was to provide continuity in these extraordinary times.
Whether or not the board will ask him to stay on as one of Wales’ representatives on the World Rugby council will be determined next week.
The constitution permits the board to offer the post to anyone they see fit, and, given Davies is on the World Rugby executive committee, they might see that as a favourable option.
WRU Group turned over £79.9m during YE20 and was able to limit retained losses to £5.3m despite the Covid-19 pandemic.
‘We can be proud of what we’ve achieved so far… but there is also much hard work ahead’ – CEO PHILLIPS
🗞️ https://t.co/r6KXWu85bw
📰 https://t.co/dlqp2KF1Yx pic.twitter.com/0WAY7haRET— Welsh Rugby Union 🏉 (@WelshRugbyUnion) October 12, 2020
How the clubs will view such a move if it transpires, given they expressed their view of his tenure by drumming him out of office, remains to be seen.
Will the old guard on the board risk incurring the wrath of the clubs, or will a new spirit and new broom take a different view?
“I have been enriched by my experiences as a board member and as chairman of the WRU board and I have achieved many of the things that I set out to achieve during my six-year tenure,” said the departing Davies in his chairman’s report.
“We have introduced governance change and modernisation that many thought an historic Union like ours would have found impossible to do, but we are not the finished article yet. There is more to do, and these are particularly challenging times for our game, for the many reasons outlined above.
“I offer my successor or successors on council, board and as WRU chair my very best and sincere wishes as they seek to address the challenges ahead and further secure the future of our cherished national game. It has been my great honour to be of service.”
The role of chairman has been occupied by a nationalrepresentative ever since Vernon Pugh first filed the office.
Glanmor Griffiths followed and David Pickering and Gareth Davies took over after him.
The national representatives on the board are both in the World Rugby Hall of Fame, Liza Burgess and Ieuan Evans.
Will it be one of them, or will there be shift away from tradition?
It promises to be a crucial vote for the future of the game in Wales.
