Welsh Rugby Union chief executive Steve Phillips has denied there is a "master and slave relationship" between the WRU and Wales' four regions.
A catastrophic weekend for Welsh rugby, with the men's and U20s sides shipping more than 80 points between them in Ireland, has only served to shine a light on the issues facing Welsh rugby.
Many of those point back to the Union's governing of the game and its performance pathways in this country, with the regions having been hindered in recent times by the albatross of the £20million Coronavirus Large Business Interruption Loan Scheme loan around their collective necks.
Now, Phillips has revealed he is confident negotiations over the refinancing of the loan will be concluded within the next three weeks.
The WRU negotiated the loan for Wales’ four pro sides at the start of the pandemic in 2020 to avoid financial disaster.
However, the unfavourable original terms of the loan meant that the regions were originally expected to pay it back over a three-year period.
Once the loan is renegotiated, the four regions will have to pay back the interest payments to the WRU.
“We are pretty much agreed in principle, and I’m very optimistic,” Phillips said. “It is agreed, and we are now at the documentation stage.
“Let’s just say we’ve been delayed two to three weeks due to crowds or no crowds [in Wales], etc. It’s all in hand, and it’s imminent that we’ll be concluding this. I’m hoping to do it in the next two or three weeks.
“We had to do the CBILS at the time because that was the only thing available to us.
“CBILS will get refinanced with the Welsh Government hopefully over the next couple of weeks, and then the deal becomes effectively a refinance with Welsh Government.”
The loan has attracted plenty of criticism, with the regions questioning the morality of having to pay it back on such unfavourable terms, while former Harlequins chief executive Mark Evans called the move "inexplicable".
That feeling is exacerbated by the regions having received far less from the Union in terms of payment for the services of Welsh internationals since the beginning of the pandemic.
However, Phillips is insistent that without the loan, the regions likely would not be here right now.
“I’m pretty confident that would have been the answer,” Phillips said when asked if any of the professional sides would have gone bust.
On the subject of whether the loan was immoral in how it was shaped, Phillips denied any sort of "master and slave relationship" with the four regions.
“I don’t recognise that. I don’t think there’s a master-slave relationship, and there’s no such conversation at PRB level covering that point.
“There’s a couple of points in there. In terms of the structure that is now in place that was all agreed at PRB level.
“There’s documentation reflecting it. In terms of what we are now doing it’s everything we discussed and agree at PRB level.
“To your question, which I think is what you are asking me, 'should you have paid them more?' We were in a pandemic, there weren’t any revenues around, etc etc. To your point about our commercial partnerships; no, they didn’t.
“A lot of them held up but don’t underestimate how much revenues were lost."
Phillips also addressed the impending departure of PRB chair, Amanda Blanc. The chief executive of Aviva will leave her role in February, just a few months after being named inside the top 30 of Forbes’ most powerful women of 2021. It was notable how effusive the four regions were in praising her when her resignation was announced, however the reasons for her departure have remained a secret so far.
Phillips, however, would not be drawn on any idea that she disagreed with the corporate governance at the Union or that there was a "smoking gun" in the form of a letter to the WRU explaining her reasons.
“Not that I’m aware of,” Phillips said.
“I think what we have to recognise is that Amanda has done a great job in very challenging circumstances. She came in straight into the pandemic.
"She’s been great, so I think Welsh rugby owes her a massive sense of gratitude. A head-hunter has been appointed to find her successor, and we want it resolved as soon as possible.”
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