Today's rugby news as Welsh star announces exit after 'tough journey' and coach departs weeks after suspension
Today's rugby news as Welsh star announces exit after 'tough journey' and coach departs weeks after suspension
The latest rugby news from Wales and around the world
Ashton Hewitt (R) has announced he will leave the Dragons
(Image: Huw Evans Picture Agency Ltd )
Here are your rugby morning headlines for Saturday, May 17.
Welsh star confirms exit ahead of final appearance
Ashton Hewitt has confirmed that he will leave the Dragons following his final match for the club today. The wing, who has made 130 appearances for the Men of Gwent since making his debut in 2013, will take on the Bulls in Pretoria this afternoon before heading elsewhere.
It's not clear where the 30-year-old - who sits second on the club's all-time try-scoring charts with 37 over 11 seasons - will go, although it's understood recently reformed Worcester had previously shown some interest.
In a statement posted on his social media, Hewitt said: "After 12 years, Saturday will be my last game in a Dragons jersey. It's been a tough journey at times, but I take a huge amount of pride to have represented the region and pull on the jersey as many times as I have for my home club.
"I want to thank all of my team-mates along the way, some of them my best mates and relationships that won't end here. I'd also like to thank all of the staff that make the club what it is.
"Finally, I want to thank the fans who have stuck with us no matter what, but for more than just the rugby. I've had some challenging times off the pitch after becoming vocal about racism and the support I received from fans, publicly and privately, means more to me than any cheer for stepping onto the field.
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"It's been a pleasure, Ashton."
In their own statement, the Dragons thanked Hewitt for his service, with head coach Filo Tiatia saying: 'Ashton is a well-respected and popular player who came through our Academy system and went on to play over a century of games for the Dragons.
'Ashton has achieved a huge amount for this club and been a wonderful advocate for our sport.
'He has always given 100 percent whenever he has pulled on a jersey that means so much to him and shown his resilience and determination to come back from serious injury in recent seasons.
'Ashton and his young family will always be a part of our club and he leaves with our best wishes for the future and the next chapter of his career. They will always be warmly welcomed back at Rodney Parade.'
Backs Coach Matt O'Brien added: 'Ashton has been an outstanding servant to Dragons RFC for over a decade, both on and off the field.
'He's not just a great player but a great person too who, if it wasn't for some seriously bad timing with injury, would have achieved international honours.
'Ashton's had to show great resilience to get back from some serious injuries over recent times which shows how much playing for his home club and representing Newport means to him.
'He's second in the club's all-time try scoring charts which shows how much of an impact he's had on the field during his career at Dragons.
'Ashton is undoubtedly one of our very best homegrown talents to come through the pathway and we wish him every success in the future.'
Cardiff coach rues play-off heartbeark
Cardiff coach Matt Sherratt was philosophical after his side narrowly missed out on a first ever URC play-off place.
The 34-24 defeat to the Stormers in Cape Town, along with results elsewhere, ensured the Arms Park club would finish the season in ninth - just shy of the play-off places.
"We've shown with this team over the last two seasons that we don't lack effort," said Sherratt.
"Obviously I'm disappointed. It's a game we could have got more out of. We missed out on a point at the end.
"But it's important to reflect on the season as a whole. It's easy to look at one game and the odd moment.
"Ultimately we've played 18 games and just come up short. But I think expectations at the start of the season have been exceeded. Icing on the cake would have been getting to the play-offs, there's no doubt about that.
"But still to double our wins, play some of the rugby we've played, the amount of tries and tries bonuses, we've certainly developed on last season.
"It's important to take a breath. The biggest thing for me is it's important for the club to keep pushing forward."
Coach leaves English giants weeks after being suspended
Long-serving Exeter Chiefs coach Ali Hepher has left the Premiership club by mutual consent - just weeks after being suspended following the club's record defeat to the Gloucester.
Despite being part of their coaching set-up since 2009, Hepher - along with Rob Hunter - was suspended after the 79-17 defeat to the Cherry and Whites.
After working alongside Rob Baxter for eight years, Hepher had been promoted to head coach in 2017 - with the club winning two Premiership titles and a Champions Cup during his time there. However, he was demoted earlier this year after the Chiefs suffered their worst season since promotion to the Premiership in 2010.
The club currently sit in ninth, having lost 12 out of their 16 matches.
Hunter, who succeeded Hepher as head coach, has already left the club following his suspension.
Now Hepher, who had been due to take on a role transitioning players from the academy to the first team this summer, has also gone.
Director of rugby Baxter has refused to comment on whether former Newcastle boss Dave Walder will take over Hepher's role - despite being pictured in a club photograph during a training session last week.
"Ali has contributed immensely to Exeter Rugby Club over a long period of sustained success," chairman Tony Rowe said in a statement.
"His influence on our coaching environment and playing culture has been considerable and I would like to wish him all the best for the future."
Baxter added: "Working alongside Ali for so many seasons has been a genuine privilege.
"His insight, energy, and passion for the game have helped drive this club forward in countless ways and I know everyone here will join me in thanking him for all he's done."
Lions call-up to make timely return
By Gavin McCafferty, PA
Sione Tuipulotu makes a timely return as Glasgow close their regular United Rugby Championship season with the toughest assignment of them all.
The Scotland centre returns following a four-month lay-off with a pectoral injury as Warriors face Leinster at the Aviva Stadium.
With a home quarter-final already secured and a summer with the British and Irish Lions to look forward to, Tuipulotu is set for a challenging comeback against a side that beat Glasgow at the same venue in the European Champions Cup.
Head Coach Franco Smith told glasgowwarriors.org: 'Our medical and S&C teams have been working closely with Sione over the last few weeks in order to put him in the best possible position, and his enthusiasm for his return to action has been infectious.'
Scotland Under-20 hooker Seb Stephen has been handed a baptism of fire after being named in the starting line-up for his professional debut.
Flanker Macenzzie Duncan makes his first start for Glasgow while Jare Oguntibeju also comes into the second row.
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Smith added: 'We also look forward to seeing Jare and Macenzzie run out after impressing for our under-23 squad last week, and we congratulate Seb on being named in a Glasgow Warriors matchday 23 for the first time.
'Each man has earned their opportunity to start this weekend and we know that they will all give everything for this team.'
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Wales Online
6 hours ago
- Wales Online
Tonight's rugby news as Farrell fights back tears in Lions phone call and Welsh star slams 's**t' situation
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Last week saw England defeat Wales in a warm-up match in Pontypool, but the ghosts of Cardiff are still fuelling England's title bid this summer. 'There's definitely hurt,' Coen told PlanetRugby. 'There are a lot of boys who are hurting still, but that's going to be fuel for the World Cup campaign. There's no hiding away from it, we were outstanding all tournament, but then didn't show up in that last game (against Wales). That's the way sport is sometimes. Get the latest breaking Welsh rugby news stories sent straight to your inbox with our FREE daily newsletter. Sign up here. Article continues below 'I feel it's a massive learning curve and will be fuel for the fire. A lot of lads are hurting, including me; it took me a good few weeks to properly get over it, and I'm probably still not over it, but it's probably not regret, it's more learning. 'We've definitely addressed it, but we haven't really lingered on it. 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Daily Record
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Wales Online
10 hours ago
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Welsh rugby's possible new future as behind-scenes talks reach crucial stage
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The men's national team have lost their previous 17 Test matches - a tier one record - and the four professional clubs - Cardiff, Dragons, Ospreys and Scarlets - have struggled to attain any sort of sustained success. Something has to change and things cannot go on as they are. Article continues below When the men's national side struggles it has a negative knock-on effect on the whole of Welsh rugby from a financial sense. Yes, there are some talented youngsters in the current Wales squad who will get better, while there are some potentially outstanding players emerging from the pathway, but the WRU needs to produce the optimum structure to give them the best chance of developing. Currently Wales' talent is spread too thinly across four professional clubs, while there are also a plethora of Welsh-qualified players in England. During the 2024/25 season, the Welsh clubs were operating from a salary cap of £4.5m, although that will rise next season at Cardiff and the Dragons who have signed the new Professional Rugby Agreement. The Gallagher Premiership salary cap this season was £6.4m which can rise to as high as £7.8m with home-grown player credits, international player credits and extra money for injury dispensation, while they are permitted one marquee player above the cap. In Ireland, Leinster have been significantly more well-resourced than the other three provinces - Connacht, Munster and Ulster - although this gap is closing next season. Sign up to Inside Welsh rugby on Substack to get exclusive news stories and insight from behind the scenes in Welsh rugby. It is very difficult to pin down Leinster's exact playing budgets but Irish sources have told WalesOnline it is in the region of €10.6m Crucially, in Ireland, professional sportsmen get a tax break when they retire which means the sides in Ireland don't have to pay their players as much. For example, a professional player in Wales might be on £120,000 at the Scarlets but get offered £180,000 to sign for Exeter Chiefs. In Ireland a player might be on £120,000 at Munster but get offered £180,000 to sign for an English club but if he stays in Ireland he will be able to claim money back upon retirement. The Irish Government also puts huge investment into professional sport. For example, Connacht received a €10 million grant through the Large-Scale Sports Infrastructure Fund to go towards the development of a new stadium in Galway. These are issues outside of the WRU's control but if it wants professional clubs who are competing for silverware every season they are likely to need playing budgets in the region of £9m. The reality is it cannot do this with four clubs any longer and that is why it is looking at the prospect of reducing to three, if not two, professional sides. For the national side to get back to winning Six Nations Grand Slams it needs its professional clubs competing every year in the latter stages of the Champions Cup and United Rugby Championship, if not winning it. This requires a greater squad spend but also creating an elitist high-performance system built on extremely high standards. For example, Leinster have a squad of 58 players and there is huge cohesion in terms of partnerships, which benefits Ireland at Test level. If you look at Leinster's front-row they have the likes of Andrew Porter, Dan Sheehan and Tadhg Furlong as starters but on the bench they have further internationals in the shape of Ronan Kelleher, Jack Boyle, Gus McCarthy and Thomas Clarkson, along with a senior France international in Rabah Slimani. To put it into context their two first choice hookers are in the British & Irish Lions squad to tour Australia this summer. That is the level of depth and competition for places needed for Welsh rugby to thrive. Also, with greater depth there will be less of a drop off when teams suffer injuries. Join WalesOnline Rugby's WhatsApp Channel here to get the breaking news sent straight to your phone for free There are also 32 non-Welsh qualified players in Wales, so fewer professional clubs would result in a significant reduction, but the ones that are signed should in theory be marquee players in the same bracket as All Blacks superstar Jordie Barrett who is on a sabbatical at Leinster. At international level Ireland is mainly Leinster with the likes of Tadhg Beirne and Bundee Aki added in on top. The players are all in sync with each other and also benefit from being part of a squad which is regularly competing at the cutting edge of competitions. Wales needs to produce something similar. Two or three clubs competing every year in the quarter-finals of the Champions Cup as a minimum, with the aim of winning is what is being discussed behind closed doors. It is close to impossible to achieve this with four clubs. Talent needs to be concentrated to increase competition for places which should in theory drive up standards across the board which was the thinking behind moving to regional rugby back in 2003. Also, it should also be an aim of the WRU to have at least one club participate in the financially lucrative Club World Cup which will be launched in 2028. Latter stage participation will also significantly improve commercial performances and bring in money across the board. But what also needs to be taken into consideration is what structure underpins the professional game. A new-look Super Rygbi Cymru If the WRU decides to reduce to three or two clubs there needs to be greater investment in Super Rygbi Cymru so it can potentially mirror New Zealand's NPC. The first season of SRC has been positive with the competition achieving far greater alignment to the pathway than the old Welsh Premiership did. But the gap between the professional game and the SRC still needs to be bridged significantly before it is anywhere near the level on offer in New Zealand. But if the WRU reduces the number of professional sides it will have the money to invest in the SRC to significantly increase standards, interest among fans who still hold famous club names dear and commercial possibilities. Get the latest breaking Welsh rugby news stories sent straight to your inbox with our FREE daily newsletter. Sign up here. Naturally, there will also be more professional standard players available to SRC teams if there are fewer professional clubs. If we go down to two professional clubs they will have far deeper squads and will release a greater percentage of players to play in the SRC. Article continues below The discussions at PRB level have to focus on what is needed to get the men's national side competing at the top end of the world game again The way to do that is to have professional clubs regularly competing for and winning silverware. Those at the top of Welsh are increasingly aware the status quo simply cannot deliver that.
