Gareth Anscombe criticises Welsh rugby leadership, says players should have struck

Gareth Anscombe said he is "sick of the mess" in Welsh rugby and criticised those in charge for making "horrible decisions" that have left players frustrated and uncertain about the future of the domestic game.

The Wales fly-half, who relocated to the south of France this summer to join Top 14 club Bayonne, told reporters he believed Welsh players should have followed through on a threatened strike in 2023 and warned that a proposed reduction from four regions to two would leave Welsh rugby in a perilous state.

Anscombe, 34, said he had deliberately tried to distance himself from the ongoing debate since moving abroad but could not ignore what he described as a pattern of poor decision-making by the Welsh Rugby Union. "They've made some horrible decisions," he said. "I also feel like what's killed Wales has been a lack of decision making. They've been so scared to make one. The knock-on effect has been we've sat on our hands and the game has got worse and worse."

The WRU is conducting a stakeholder consultation into a preferred "optimal solution" that would reduce the number of professional regions in Wales from four to two. The consultation is due to end next month, and the proposal could face a decision by the governing body's board in the weeks following.

Anscombe expressed concern that two teams, each with large squads, would not provide enough regular high-level game time for emerging players. He said the United Rugby Championship was not serving Welsh rugby well and suggested as an alternative having at least two Welsh sides in the English Premiership, with additional teams placed lower in the league structure to develop young talent.

"I don't see how having two teams with squads of 50 each changes that," Anscombe said. "My opinion about what is best for Welsh rugby would be having at least two teams in the English Premiership. It's a no-brainer from a rugby and commercial point of view."

He also criticised non-playing investments and repeated use of external consultants while questioning the accountability of those running the game. "The WRU invested in a hotel and a zip line. But we've stopped the main thing being the main thing and now the main thing is in a bad, bad way," he said. "You do need consultants. I get that. But if that's the case, why are we paying the people in charge?"

Anscombe moved from New Zealand to Wales in 2014 and earned 46 caps for his adopted country, contributing to the 2019 Six Nations Grand Slam and Wales' first-ever win in South Africa in 2022. He said he has not discussed his international future with newly appointed Wales head coach Steve Tandy and acknowledged uncertainty about adding to his cap total while playing in France.

His playing career has included stints at Cardiff, Japan's Suntory, English Premiership side Gloucester and now Bayonne. Anscombe described a period of contract uncertainty that followed a groin problem in Japan and a single season at Gloucester, where he said communication over his future was poor.

"It probably wasn't done with full honesty. There were certainly some messed up channels of communication," he said. "That's rugby. It's led me to this opportunity now which feels like the right one. It's tough when you enter the back end of a season and you're still trying to figure out a contract. There's financial and real-life pressure. It's an emotional rollercoaster."

Anscombe spoke from a new home in Anglet, between Bayonne and Biarritz, where he has moved with his pregnant wife, Milica, their children and the family dog. He said the timing was right to test himself in the Top 14 and praised the strength of French rugby despite acknowledging financial pressures in the global game.

He repeated his view that players should have taken stronger collective action amid governance disputes. "As players in Wales, we should have stuck our heels in the ground more. In 2023, the boys should have gone through with the strike threat. One million per cent it should have happened because look at the mess we're in now."

In addition to his comments on governance, Anscombe spoke about development pathways. He proposed a model with three Welsh sides in the Premiership and a fourth operating on a smaller budget in the Championship to give younger players more playing opportunities alongside a few experienced heads.

The WRU's proposals have prompted strong debate among stakeholders, regional officials and supporters. Critics say a two-region model risks concentrating resources while diminishing opportunities for regional identities and player development; proponents argue it could provide a more financially sustainable professional base.

Anscombe acknowledged the ups and downs of his own career, including a more than two-year absence with a serious knee injury and a bone graft, and described professional sport's uncertainty for players and their families. He said he hoped to remain in France for as long as possible but expected his family would return to Cardiff when he retired.

The outcome of the WRU consultation and any subsequent board decision will shape the professional game in Wales for years and determine how the pathway for young players is structured, a matter Anscombe said he regarded as vital to the nation's future competitiveness.