WRU: Proposal to cut one of the Welsh rugby regions

The Professional Rugby Board, which runs the game in Wales and features members from the Welsh Rugby Union, Dragons, Cardiff, Ospreys and Scarlets, commissioned a report.

It proposed a number of options, one of which is to cut the amount of professional sides from four to three. Reviving the doomed 2019 merger between the Scarlets and Ospreys is another suggestion.

The Dragons have long been the team seen as under threat with past suggestions of making them a development region.

They became WRU-owned in 2017 - a deal that saw the governing body buy Rodney Parade from Newport RFC - but results have not improved.

Dragons chairman David Buttress has been frustrated in his bid to take them back into private ownership but vowed to fight for the region's future.

"Worrying is a rubbish waste of time," the minority shareholder Tweeted in response to the Rodney Roar fans account.

"Fighting, believing, building, backing ourselves and sticking together is what I will spent my energy on. We have a long way to go together yet."

The report was commissioned due to the financial struggles of the professional game while all four teams have had poor campaigns and Wales endured an awful Six Nations.

It has been widely acknowledged that brave decisions need to be made for the long-term future of the professional game in Wales.

A WRU spokesperson said: "Oakwell were commissioned by the Professional Rugby Board (PRB) to produce a report exploring the strategic options available to the professional game in Wales.

"It contains a number of recommendations which form a part of the current discussions taking place at the PRB.

"There are other reports informing these discussions and it would be inappropriate to comment further at this juncture."

The report will be discussed by the PRB next week.