A leading Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) board member has railed against comments on social media that have “crossed the line” during debates around the future of the game’s professional structure.
The governing body’s community game board chair John Manders also says WRU chiefs were due to attend a meeting of one area’s clubs before being asked by a local MP not to do so.
Manders has written to member clubs, saying Swansea West MP Torsten Bell sent a message on behalf of clubs from WRU district E asking that WRU chief executive and other leading figures not to attend a meeting in Swansea on 4 February.
Swansea-based Ospreys are under threat of being removed from the professional tier with owners Y11 Sports & Media in negotiations with the WRU as preferred bidders to buy Cardiff from the governing body.
That scenario could see the WRU achieve its wish of reducing Welsh rugby’s top tier from four to three teams.
Manders wrote: “We had arranged for Abi Tierney, Alison Thorne and me to come along to the meeting as we thought it was important to hear directly from everyone with concerns and to be there to answer questions.
“On the day of the meeting, however, we received a note from Torsten Bell, MP to say that District E would prefer us not to attend and asking us to consider their wishes.
“Reluctantly, we agreed to respect the wishes of District E and did not attend on this occasion. Please be assured, though, that we were all keen and willing to attend the public meeting and talk with everyone there.”
As the debate has raged on over the WRU’s plans and strategy aimed at achieving them, social media has been a hive of conjecture and comment.
Manders wrote there is “a huge amount of negative social media attacking individuals involved in the tough challenges we are undertaking at the moment”.
He added: “The board of the WRU has no issue with robust debate, except to say that some of this has recently crossed the line into highly personal and inappropriate content including the potential for hate speech and defamation.
“We are asking everyone involved in any official capacity right across Welsh rugby to do what they can to ensure that this is moderated properly in accordance with proper standards of behaviour and ethics.
“Ultimately, we all want Welsh rugby to succeed and to be respected so that future generations view it as an aspiration. Whatever our differences of opinion, this is important to us all.”
