The Welsh Players Association (WRPA), founded in 2003, is the representative body for professional rugby union

Rugby union

Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...

 players in Wales

Wales

Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...

. Its General Secretary is Neil Maclean-Smith, who succeeded previous General Secretary, Dean Sheehan and former Chief Executive, Richard Harry

Richard Harry

Richard Lewis Lloyd Harry is a retired Australian rugby union player....

. Rhys Williams, former Wales and Cardiff Blues Fullback has been President since 2010. The association is part funded by the Welsh Rugby Union

Welsh Rugby Union

The Welsh Rugby Union is the governing body of rugby union in Wales, recognised by the International Rugby Board.The union's patron is Queen Elizabeth II, and her grandson Prince William of Wales became the Vice Royal Patron of the Welsh Rugby Union as of February 2007.-History:The roots of the...

.

Membership

Membership of the WRPA is made up of players who play for the four professional regions; Cardiff Blues

Cardiff Blues

Cardiff Blues are one of the four professional Welsh regional rugby union teams. Based in Cardiff, the capital of Wales, the team have played at Cardiff City Stadium since the start of the 2009/2010 season and are owned by Cardiff Rugby Football Club....

, Llanelli Scarlets

Llanelli Scarlets

The Scarlets are one of the four professional Welsh regional rugby union teams. Based in Llanelli, south-west Wales the team play at the Parc y Scarlets stadium. They play in the RaboDirect Pro12, as well as competing in the LV= Cup and the Heineken Cup...

, Ospreys and the Newport Gwent Dragons

Newport Gwent Dragons

Newport Gwent Dragons are one of the four professional Rugby Union regional teams in Wales. They are jointly owned by Newport RFC and the Welsh Rugby Union and play all their home games at Rodney Parade, Newport. They play in the RaboDirect Pro12, the Anglo-Welsh Cup and the Heineken Cup...

 as well as current Welsh Internationals who play outside of Wales.

Establishment

The WRPA was established in 2003 in response to changes in the professional game. Its first task was to negotiate with the WRU to establish a proper insurance

Insurance

In law and economics, insurance is a form of risk management primarily used to hedge against the risk of a contingent, uncertain loss. Insurance is defined as the equitable transfer of the risk of a loss, from one entity to another, in exchange for payment. An insurer is a company selling the...

 scheme for all professional players in Wales and also to set up a commercial arm for the Wales national team

Wales national rugby union team

The Wales national rugby union team represent Wales in international rugby union tournaments. They compete annually in the Six Nations Championship with England, France, Ireland, Italy and Scotland. Wales have won the Six Nations and its predecessors 24 times outright, second only to England with...

, Team Wales. In 2011, the WRPA introduced the Player Development Programme to assist players with life off the rugby field. The PDP covers areas including, Personal & Professional Development, Welfare and Lifestyle and Planning for the future.

Objectives

The purpose and objectives of the WRPA are:

• Safeguard players rights.
• Provide representation at the highest level of the game.
• Regulation of industrial relations.
• Progression of the game in Wales by working with the Welsh Rugby Union and Regions.
• Promotion and representation the interests of members.
• To maintain conditions of employment for members.
• Dispute resolution.
• Welfare programmes for players who suffer injury.

Services

These WRPA serve its members on both rugby related and personal matters, these include:

• Collective representation on employment issues and representing individual players through any employment disputes.
• Collective representation on Player Insurance issues and representing individual players with their claims.
• Updating members on developments in relevant areas of the law.
• Developing a financial benefits package for all members.
• Monitoring anti-doping programmes.
• Facilitating professional advice such as lawyers and accountants.
• Provision of non-rugby career development.
• Financial education.
• Provision of a members’ affinity programme.

Awards

The WRPA also presides over the Players Player of the Year Award. The 2010 winner was Irish International

Ireland national rugby union team

The Ireland national rugby union team represents the island of Ireland in rugby union. The team competes annually in the Six Nations Championship and every four years in the Rugby World Cup, where they reached the quarter-final stage in all but two competitions The Ireland national rugby union...

, Tommy Bowe

Tommy Bowe

Thomas John "Tommy" Bowe is an Irish rugby union footballer from County Monaghan, Ireland...

 of Ospreys. Bowe was also awarded the IRUPA Players Player of the Year Award.

See also

• The Professional Rugby Players' Association
  The Professional Rugby Players' Association
  The Rugby Players Association is a trade union representing athletes who currently play or have played rugby union in England at a professional or semi-professional level. Established in 1998, it was originally called the Professional Rugy Players' Association ; in October 2009 it changed its name...
  
  
• Irish Rugby Union Players Association
  Irish Rugby Union Players Association
  The Irish Rugby Union Players Association is the representative body for professional rugby players in Ireland. Founded in October 2001, its aims are to promote and protect the welfare of professional rugby players in Ireland. The Chief Executive Officer is Niall Woods and Marcus Horan is its...