Cross-party voices from both MP and MS representatives in West Wales are united in outlining how vitally important Scarlets rugby based at Parc y Scarlets is to the future of Welsh rugby.
Local politicians met Scarlets Managing Director Jon Daniels on a visit to Parc y Scarlets ahead of the opening game of the new season to discuss how the stadium and Scarlets rugby in West Wales will continue to contribute to the future success of the game in Wales.
Llanelli MP Dame Nia Griffith said: “It is clear that the Scarlets based at its excellent rugby and community stadium here at Parc y Scarlets in the heart of Llanelli, offers huge opportunities and the key to unlock the rebirth of Welsh rugby moving forward and support its future success.
“The WRU and all those involved in making decisions about the future of the professional game in Wales really need to understand just how good Parc y Scarlets is and the fantastic facilities it provides for the progression of elite rugby, the rugby pathway and our community.
“Scarlets has a unique heritage, a strong brand and huge promise and with rugby at its heart can and will support the future of Welsh rugby. It will help bring success to West Wales as well as feeding the national game, as it has done consistently in the past.
“Parc y Scarlets is one of the best rugby facilities in Wales – it’s home to a club packed with talent, expertise and is a flag-bearer for Llanelli and our region. If the WRU want a better game nationally, Scarlets and Parc y Scarlets are ready and waiting to deliver what’s needed for the game in Wales.”
Carmarthen MP Ann Davies said: “Scarlets has a thriving rugby pathway that nurtures and supports new rugby talent from across the region of West Wales where rugby means everything. Grassroots clubs and semi-professional teams feed into it and it has shown time and again it works.
“Scarlets will continue to develop top-class international players and coaches, and that’s crucial in any review of the professional game. Scarlets have produced about 34% of all Wales‑capped players in the last ten years – which tells its own story about how good the pathway is.”
Cefin Campbell, MS for Mid and West Wales region, said: “Scarlets is an iconic club known all over the world and has produced some of the best players Wales and British and Irish Lions for decades. It is impossible to think about rugby in Wales without the Scarlets at its heart.
“To hear, see and feel the passion and sentiment on Saturday at the first match of the season, I think it showed the rugby world what this club means to so many people in West Wales and the inspiration it brings to young people and players and its ability to connect rugby with community.
“It is the gateway to the whole of West Wales. There is opportunity and progression here that the WRU simply has to support and grasp.”
(Main picture) Cefin Campbell, MS for Mid and West Wales and Dame Nia Griffith MP are pictured with Scarlets Managing Director Jon Daniels and pupils of Ysgol y Felin, who were being taken on a tour of the stadium by our Scarlets Community team.