The Welsh Rugby Union is exploring how Wales Women internationals can ply their club trade closer to home in future instead of all playing in England.
All 12 of Wales Women's new full-time professionals and nine semi-pros play in the Allianz Premier 15s, England's top women's rugby competition which is almost entirely made up of clubs affiliated to a men's Gallagher Premiership side.
The women's rugby pathway in Wales is missing a club tournament which provides the same level of competition and intensity to bridge the gap from grassroots rugby to international duty.
WRU performance director Nigel Walker revealed during the autumn that English rugby bosses had rejected his proposal of introducing a Welsh team to their league, and is now exploring all options on the table for how women's club competition looks in Wales in the years to come.
"I knew before I even accepted the job, that we’ve got a number of our players playing in England," Walker said.
"There’s nothing wrong with that in itself, but we’re looking at the standard of club rugby and what we do to bridge that gap between club rugby in Wales and international rugby.
"That’s quite a big task, but we need to address that to make sure that element of the pathway is as smooth and aligned as it possibly can be.
"I was very open, I approached the Rugby Football Union and it was a ‘no’ but we're still talking."
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It is widely accepted that the Premier 15s provides current Wales Women internationals with the best club environment possible at the moment, given the tournament's intensity, facilities available and the fact some of the best players in the world - including many of England's professional stars - are team-mates and opponents.
But Welsh rugby bosses are keen to provide the option of playing in a competition of a similar standard in Wales in future, to have its own standalone pathway from grassroots all the way to Test rugby.
"It is a big issue, it’s something we need to overcome," Walker added.
"The next generation of players need to be super excited and I’d like to think one day we’ll have professional teams playing in Wales."
Age-grade rugby being re-introduced is a positive step in the right direction for now, with under-18s girls' rugby taking place across Wales' four regions and in north Wales with a view to facing each other in February before playing for Wales U18s in April under age-grade coach Liza Burgess.
Going forward, Walker has assembled a women's rugby strategy group to look at the game in Wales from top to bottom, including former Wales captain, ex-WRU board chair and current Wales Women age-grade coach Burgess, former Wales fly-half Amanda Bennett (one of three panellists in the WRU's independent review into women's performance rugby), WRU women's and girls' national lead game changer Joe Davies, community director Geraint John, Wales Women team manager Hannah John and regional representatives.
It comes off the back of the historic contracts introduction for Wales Women, solidifying their coaching team after something of a revolving door in recent years, U18s and U20s Wales teams being formed, and off-field WRU appointments to aid Wales Women in areas like science and medicine, with new appointments for nutrition and lifestyle personnel coming in over the next month or so.
"We know the top end of the game is important and we know there had been discussion of contracts for three or four years and if we want our players to be the best version of themselves, we need as many people on contracts as we can so their programmes can be managed," Walker added.
"That’s important but obviously the grassroots and community game is really important because that’s when you’re enthusing young girls - aged eight, nine, 10, 11 - to play the game. But when they’ve played the game for two or three years, you need to make sure they stay engaged and when it comes to age-grade rugby and U18s and U20s, the next step is always there and it’s visible for them.
"The whole pathway is important, and we’re looking at the talent pathway from seven or eight right the way through to senior rugby.
"There are some holes in it at the moment, we recognise there are holes, and the strategy group is there to come up with some solutions and suggestions to bridge those gaps that currently exist."
While having professional women's club teams in Wales is some way off, there is cause to be optimistic about grassroots women's rugby in Wales, with Llandaff North captain Liliana Podpadec, Pontyclun Falcons' Lowri Norkett and Lampeter product Sian Davies all being included in Wales' first training camp of the year at the weekend.
As for Wales' top players right now, they are into their third week of the WRU's new performance programme, which is regularly being tailored to work around demands of club rugby in England.
Wales Women head coach Ioan Cunningham said: "We’re still looking at a four-day week for the full-timers but we do coordinate with their clubs as well, which is really important. We still want them to play at a high standard and we don’t want to burn them out either, so it’s getting that balancing act right."
As for English clubs' reactions to WRU contracts, Walker added: "Ioan has had those conversations - meaningful conversations. They understand where we’re coming from, we understand what they want to achieve and it’s bringing those two things together so the players benefit from both input from the club and the Welsh Rugby Union. We’re confident we’re in a position where we can achieve that."
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