The period of austerity which has taken effect in Welsh rugby has led many pundits to fear the worst for Cardiff, Dragons, Ospreys and Scarlets.
Squad sizes are getting driven down while the professional sides will eventually have to operate off a salary cap of £4.5million. It doesn't take a genius to work out this will hamper their chances of being successful, at least in the short term, but one positive consequence could be players from this current crop of Wales U20s squad getting fast-tracked into senior rugby.
One player who is hoping to take advantage of this is talented Ospreys outside-half Dan Edwards, who is very highly rated within the Wales U20s set-up. With Gareth Anscombe and Stephen Myler having left the Ospreys and Owen Williams in with a shout of making Wales' Rugby World Cup squad, there is every chance Edwards will be pressed into action in the early rounds of the United Rugby Championship.
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"I've still got another year left at the Ospreys but this is a massive opportunity to really cement my place," said Edwards. "I had quite a bit of Premiership experience over the past couple of seasons with Aberavon and Swansea, which I'm very grateful for. They gave me the chance to go out there and perform.
"Hopefully, when I go back to the region after this [U20s] World Cup I can really push for game time. I want to express myself in the pro environment and have a nice long career. Everyone goes out, especially myself, to express themselves. Hopefully when that chance comes I take it with both hands but my main focus is on this World Cup."
Edwards is a player around whom there is a real buzz, with his Aberavon coach Jason Hyatt saying: “He’s an outstanding prospect who has all the attributes to play professional rugby and eventually figure at the highest level.
“When he came to us he was only 18 and carried the water in one match. I had a word with him and he said he knew he had to earn his place. I just like his attitude. When he made his competitive debut, he was man of the match. Not only can he run play, he also has a touch of flair about him and plays with freedom. He’s a player we are going to be hearing a lot about.”
As Edwards says, his first priority is to ensure Wales U20s improve on a disappointing Six Nations showing when they begin their World Rugby U20 Championship campaign against New Zealand in South Africa on Saturday. Wales have been drawn in a formidable pool which includes the All Blacks, France and Japan but Edwards believes they've got the backs to hurt any side in this tournament.
"I'm looking forward to competing against the best in the world," said the 20-year-old. "It doesn't get much better than playing in a World Cup against players you wouldn't normally play against. I think that's what I'm most looking forward to and also the challenge of facing the All Blacks first up.
"We aren't shying away from anything but we are a different team now, and we've changed quite a bit. We are looking forward to challenging everyone we come up against.
"It was pretty evident we did have an electric back-line and everyone in that back-line from nine to 15 can create something out of nothing which will be exciting to watch.
"When people watch rugby on TV they like to watch the people who create something out of nothing. There's a lot of that in this group.
"[Interim Wales U20s head coach] Mark [Jones] wants us to express ourselves and give us the confidence to go out and really push teams. Up front I think we will cope really well because the boys have put some really hard work in."
