Dragons and Scarlets at loggerheads

The four Welsh regions have always had a healthy rivalry, but now the Dragons and the Scarlets are locked in a furious war of words.

The four Welsh regions have always had a healthy rivalry, but now the Dragons and the Scarlets are locked in a furious war of words.

The Dragons have lodged an official complaint with the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) after the Scarlets made an audacious bid to tempt Wales prop Rhys Thomas to Stradey Park, as revealed in The Western Mail.

Such is the anger over the matter that Dragons chairman Martyn Hazell has gone as far as accusing the Scarlets of “trying to steal” the Grand Slam winner. However Scarlets chief executive Stuart Gallacher was quick to refute the claim and launch an attack of his own, stating that Hazell was unaware of what was going on in his own region.

With the two regions at loggerheads the matter will now be taken up by WRU chiefs at a meeting next Tuesday. The Dragons are set to raise the matter with the Professional Rugby Board, which includes representatives from Wales' four regions, and four union bigwigs.

Hazell has urged the WRU to lay down clear guidelines for the four Welsh regions to adhere to, after admitting the big-money offer from the Scarlets had unsettled Thomas. He also added that the 25-year-old would not be released until his current contract was up at Rodney Parade.

Thomas' current contract runs until the end of next season, and despite the Scarlets' efforts Hazell has stressed that the South African-born prop will not be going anywhere before that date.

Reports claim that the Scarlets, who are in desperate need of a quality tighthead, had offered Thomas a £180,000-a-year deal. Further to this the Scarlets have angered their Gwent rivals by saying Thomas was keen to join them because it would further his international prospects, given that the Dragons were seen, in powerful rugby circles, as Wales' 'Connacht'.

Gallacher believes Thomas, the Dragons' only representative in Wales' Grand Slam exploits, would have been a significant capture for the Scarlets as they prepare for their move away from world-famous Stradey Park to a brand new stadium on the outskirts of Llanelli later this year.

“We, as a region, are looking to strengthen our squad and we realise that one of the positions we need to strengthen is at tighthead prop,” admitted Gallacher to The Western Mail.

“The first thing we did was to look within Wales and establish that Rhys Thomas was someone who would be an asset to not only our squad but any squad.”

Gallacher insisted the Scarlets had followed protocol and gone through the correct channels in their pursuit of Thomas' signature, declaring they had no case to answer.

“We have not acted unethically, we have been above board and gone through the proper channels,” he maintained.

“We enquired about his availability through his agent and were informed by his agent that he was contracted by the Dragons.”

Gallacher claimed, at that juncture, he contacted Dragons Chief Executive Gethin Jenkins and Team Manager Jim McCreedy.

“I informed them we were interested in the player and offered a transfer fee. They then informed Martyn Hazell,” he alleged.

“Martyn Hazell spoke to my chairman, Huw Evans, who informed him he would have to speak to me because I was responsible for all rugby football matters.

“Martyn Hazell has not spoken to me directly. I had a message back from Gethin Jenkins and Jim McCreedy that the Dragons were not prepared to release the player.”

And Gallacher supplied a verbal sting in the tale to increase tensions between the two regions.

“Martyn Hazell should understand what is going on in his region before making accusations that are completely untrue,” he said.

An irate Hazell hit back at Gallacher claiming the Scarlets had acted in an unethical way.

“This is almost like trying to steal the player,” Hazell said.

“What would they say if I went to Stephen Jones and said I was prepared to pay him £300,000 a year for three years? How would they react to that?

“It's unethical, they shouldn't be doing this. Rhys is under contract to us until the end of next season and this approach by the Scarlets has disrupted him and made him unhappy.

“The Scarlets have offered him an enhanced salary and they've offered us a transfer fee. I have not accepted it as he is under contract to us and he's not going anywhere, he's staying with us.

“This kind of thing happening makes me wonder why we bother. We are a small nation and should have a central goal, but things like this disrupt everything, especially when the player is under contract.”

It is still unclear as to what the players' wishes are, and the Dragons have refused to reveal if Thomas has requested a transfer or not. However they did say that an agent acting for Thomas had broached the subject of a deal being hammered out with the Scarlets.

“We were asked, if an offer came in, would we release Rhys?” Jenkins revealed on Monday.

He said Gallacher then contacted him and McCready. But Jenkins was adamant that Thomas was staying with the Dragons.

“As far as we are concerned, Rhys has a year left on his contract and we won't be releasing him,” Hazell stressed.

“As we have gone on record, we have a plan to develop Welsh talent in conjunction with the redevelopment of Rodney Parade and we are going to recruit internationally as well.

“Rhys forms part of these plans and we will be discussing this with him to explain where we are going.

“Rhys has been at Rodney Parade since he was 19 through Newport youth, Newport and the Dragons, and we have fully supported Rhys through illness, injury and other issues.

“Therefore, we fully expect his contract to be honoured in return. No doubt these issues can be discussed through the regions' recognised forum, the Professional Rugby Board, next Tuesday.”

With an official WRU spokesman confirming the matter would be raised and debated at a meeting of Welsh rugby's top brass it seems it will be resolved in the near future.

Hazell urged the union to take strong action and called for them to come down off the fence.

“The WRU should step in and put their foot down, they should come off the fence,” Hazell said.

“We have developed Rhys and we've looked after him, paying him in full last season when he hardly played for us because he was ill, not injured.

“He has played for Wales from the Dragons, and we are talking to New Zealand players in the hope of strengthening our squad. We can't do any more.”