The Welsh Rugby Union have released figures that show 87 per cent of community games went ahead this season.
There has been a growing concern over the state of the grassroots game recently, with a number of matches being postponed and resulting in 20-0 walkovers.
As the season drew to a close, many clubs were fearing that their fixtures wouldn't be completed - such were the number left to be played.
Clubs continue to face a growing list of problems since the pandemic, which saw players drift away from rugby. More options for younger players outside of the sport has made it hard for clubs, with many sides telling WalesOnline of their struggles this season.
But, at the end of the first full season for four years - due to the extended break around the Covid-19 pandemic - the WRU have published a set of figures which show that a total of 2,664 men's games went ahead this season.
That equates to 87.34 per cent of matches in the fixture list, with 330 matches (10.82 per cent) being claimed and forfeited. In those instances, one team was awarded a 20-0 walkover and five match points. An additional 56 matches (1.84 per cent) were not rearranged or claimed.
WRU community director Geraint John has sent out a thank you message to people involved in the club game in Wales, saying: "People always look at the games not played, but you have got to look at the games that were played. That is a lot of games.
“While we have got 386 games not played, we have got 2664 games that have been played. We have got to thank the clubs, the players, the coaches, the volunteers and the match officials for their hard work in getting these games played.”
The affected matches had stretched from the Welsh Premiership, where Llanelli failed to fulfil fixtures, right down the leagues. The situation wasn't helped by a lack of relegation due to restructuring of the Premiership and Championship formats next year.
That lack of jeopardy had led to some sides just accepting forfeit defeats, bringing the integrity of the leagues into question. Division 3 was the section of the community game where the most games were not played.
The WRU's figures state that the average weekly completion percentage across the 26 leagues was 73.18 per cent.
In terms of reasons given for postponements, 523 were down to teams not being able to cobble together a side to fulfil the fixture. A further 438 were down to unplayable pitches, while 128 were due to clashes with cup rounds.
Many of those postponements were played at a later date.
John added that the figures do give the Union food for thought, with more matches in November being considered to compensate for the amount called off in December and January.
“On average, we get close to 75 per cent of games played each weekend,” he said. “Five of the weekends where there were less than 75 per cent played were in December and January. Much of that is down to pitches being unplayable.
“I think that’s telling us something. We know that period is a struggle for us. We have got to look at that.
“We don’t tend to play in November because of the Wales internationals. We have got to really look at that closely. Clubs start the season, they get a run of games, they are playing regularly, they are on a high, then all of a sudden they stop because of the November internationals.
“You then have a number of games postponed in December and January due to weather, so you can end up with a long break. When that happens, players lose interest and people lose interest.
“We won’t have the break in November next season because of the World Cup, but we’ve got to reconsider that period in the longer term.”
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