FORMER Wales skipper and Newbridge coach Mike Watkins, pictured, has described Welsh rugby as a farce and his club chairman Idris McCarthy has slammed the WRU for not adhering to its own rules.

McCarthy's comments follow the governing body's decision not to punish Newport for prematurely calling off their recent Premier Division game at Rodney Parade because of an alleged waterlogged pitch.

And Watkins' comments come after former Gwent regional wing Kevin James played against Newbridge for the third time on Saturday - for a third different club.

Newbridge complained to the WRU on the day of the postponement of their game at Newport last month, claiming the pitch was playable and that the Black and Ambers did not follow procedures.

The rules say a club MUST give a representative of the visiting side, a WRU referee living locally or an officer of the Union the opportunity to examine a pitch before a postponement.

Newport did none of those things but have escaped punishment, which could have included the loss of points.

In a letter, the WRU told Newbridge that as the groundsman, who declared the pitch unfit was employed by Newport Athletic Club (NAC), who own the ground, and not the rugby club, they accepted the decision was binding.

They said they would write to Newport and the Welsh director of match officials reminding them of the correct procedure to avoid a repetition. But everyone knows Newport RFC control the NAC.

McCarthy said: "You either have rules which you adhere to or you don't. We didn't want points taken off Newport but some action should have resulted."

He claimed the rules on the number of regional and other players a Premier club can use have not been kept to either, the Union claiming different rules concerning the Celtic League take precedence.

"Yet smaller clubs like Cwmbran suffer when, if they have broken a rule, it's of a very minor sort," he said. "It's something I intend bringing up at District level."

Watkins said: "The Kevin James situation epitomises what a farce and a shambles Welsh rugby is.

"He is a Gwent player yet he plays for Caerphilly against us, he plays for Ebbw Vale against us and then he plays for Neath against us. It's ridiculous.

"We're only half way through the season.

"How many more clubs is he going to play against us? Where's the fairness in it? It should never be allowed.

"I've been involved in Welsh rugby for 42 years and I've never felt as despondent as I do now with the way the game is being operated. It's an absolute farce.

"We come up against teams in our league who have five or six players any one of whose wage would cover our expenditure for the whole year, and it's supposed to be a level playing field."