These are your rugby headlines on Friday, January 27.
Welsh Rugby Players Association issue statement
The Welsh Rugby Players Association have spoken out about the allegations of a 'toxic culture' in the WRU, adding weight to the growing number of bodies to have issued statements.
"We are appalled by the recent allegations revealed by BBC Wales and strongly condemn discrimination of any kind," read a statement.
"The WRPA, as a members’ organisation, are driven to Represent, Promote, Develop & Protect our members and to contribute to a rugby environment that is safe, fair and inclusive for all."
Buttress goes public
Dragons chairman David Buttress has gone public in his support of Hayley Parsons' open letter to WRU chairman Ieuan Evans calling for the chief executive and board to stand down amid growing pressure.
A correspondence was sent to Evans on Thursday evening demanding the immediate removal of Phillips and the entire board, and was endorsed by the Scarlets, Ospreys, Cardiff and the Dragons.
In the letter Cardiff non-executive director Parsons, founder of GoCompare, called for "immediate and decisive action" and "to make a positive change for the future".
READ MORE: All four Welsh regions endorse damning letter demanding WRU chief Steve Phillips and board resign
Now Buttress has publicly supported Parsons in a social media post, adding it was "with deep regret that it’s come to this".
He wrote on his Twitter account: "I love Welsh rugby, I love the Drags and what we are trying to build together and I care deeply and passionately about all our national teams and sport. For this reason, with deep regret that it’s come to this, I fully endorse my fellow Cwmbran friend and colleague."
Evans responds to damning letter
Meanwhile, Evans says he will write back to Parsons following her damning letter calling for the organisation's chief executive Steve Phillips and board to resign.
All this comes amid the backdrop of damning allegations laid at the WRU's door of a "toxic culture" of sexism and misogyny, which you can read more about here.
Responding to Parsons on Thursday evening, Evans thanked her for her "constructive and heartfelt comments" and said he would write back to her "in detail" as well as meeting in person to discuss the matter further.
“As I made clear in statements yesterday, I will now lead on the composition of a new externally sourced Taskforce which will review our culture, systems and structures," he said.
“We need to respond to the public scrutiny we are currently experiencing, but this is also the right thing to do. We are listening.
“We are not deaf to the observations and criticisms we are receiving and we must re-examine, re-evaluate, act decisively where we find wrong-doing, and move forwards. We will do this together, we take responsibility together. We will also seek outside influence and counsel as well as looking within to the likes of our independent Board directors as Hayley suggests.
“I am already on public record, in a letter I wrote to member clubs for the new year, with my ambitions to evolve the governance structure of the WRU with the clubs and we will address this challenge with renewed vigour immediately. We will use the pressure we are under now, the pressure we have drawn on ourselves, to get better, to improve. I will not waver from this task.”
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Champions Cup set to revert to old format
The format of the Heineken Champions Cup is reportedly facing a overhaul that could come in as soon as next season.
The Telegraph report that the current convoluted format - that consists of two 12-team pools and just four pool matches - was discussed at a European Professional Club Rugby board meeting in Lausanne on Thursday. The format was originally brought in as a response to the Covid-19 pandemic, but has since become the norm.
Among the options reported to be considered would be the original format of six pools of four teams, providing clubs with six matches in the pool stage rather than four. There are also calls to return the start of the pool stage to October, rather than its current start date of December.
“Our view is to get back to a pool format – the old way of doing things,” Kevin Potts, the Irish Rugby Football Union chief executive told Telegraph Sport. “It worked really well and it gave the fans absolute certainty as to what they were actually following.
George back in the fold
Jamie George is back in the England training camp ahead of their Guinness Six Nations opener against Scotland next weekend.
The Saracens hooker was initially withdrawn from the squad after he was concussed in their defeat to Edinburgh on Sunday. George will have to continue following concussion protocols until late next week but nevertheless, he reported back to England's Surrey training base on Thursday.
Meanwhile, Lewis Ludlam has revealed how the squad are buying into the new Steve Borthwick regime. Former England captain Borthwick took over as head coach from Eddie Jones in December and - alongside Kevin Sinfield - seems to have adopted a more-approachable style than the fiery Australian.
"That is a really exciting thing," said Northampton flanker Ludlam. "You get those two, who are both real honest blokes, saying they want a team that works for each other and fights for each other.
"That is something you really want to buy into and you can feel an emotional connection to invest in what they are coaching and what the other boys want to do as well.
"There is a level of competition, yet a level of working hard for each other and we are willing to fight for each other. It is something I feel is coming together really nicely with this group.
"I feel like we're given the opportunity to really learn. We're given the space to try things, to express ourselves and the space to ask questions as well.
"I think a big part of taking on messages really quickly is that we're comfortable to ask questions, because there's no wrong question.
"So it's been brilliant, to have that emotional connection to the England side, to have that level of detail and the level of comfort to go and ask questions and learn as well, it's been brilliant."
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