If anyone has taken the time to read through the infamous Scarletfever forum over the last few months it doesn't take long to realise just how angry and disillusioned Scarlets fans have been of late.
West Walians are a passionate bunch at the best of times but when their side has only won three games all season then the criticism tends to get fiercer with every passing defeat. It would have been understandable if the Scarlets hierarchy had gone to ground until the start of next season but, to their credit, they took the honourable option of fronting up to a room full of frustrated supporters at Parc y Scarlets on Tuesday night.
No two individuals had been criticised more than head coach Dwayne Peel and general manager of rugby Jon Daniels, but both faced the music with dignity and didn't shy away from answering the tough questions. The first part of the evening saw some of the most important figures at the club in executive chairman Simon Muderack, chief financial officer Phil Morgan, club captain Josh Macleod, Daniels, Peel, transition & academy head coach Scott Sneddon and community foundation manager Paul Fisher giving presentations on the area of the club which comes under their remit.
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Undoubtedly the most significant news to come out of the evening was the announcement influential second-row Sam Lousi had signed a new contract to remain at the club while the Scarlets are set to announce a number of new signings over the coming months. Despite the very obvious challenges facing the game in Wales, Muderack was quick to remind fans Parc y Scarlets is the second biggest asset in Welsh rugby, behind the Principality Stadium, while the stadium would cost circa £45m if it was built today.
He was also keen to point out the Scarlets are the only "UK domiciled business" within the game in Wales and ensured supporters they were backed by eight financial directors who took "personal liability" to ensure the continued existence of the club. The supporters were given an update on the financial challenges the club face, while Peel outlined his commitment to turning the Scarlets around on the field.
There was also plenty of promise for the future as transition & academy head coach Sneddon talked through plans to develop the next generation of Scarlets with the clubs U18s side winning the recent Regional Age Grade Championship, while they currently have 21 age grade internationals in total. The club also revealed ambitious plans to have a professional women's team in the future.
The evening got more intense when supporters questions were answered. Initially, former Scarlets and Wales wing Garan Evans read out questions which had been sent in prior to the event before the microphone was passed around members of the audience. The Scarlets management were asked why the team had performed so badly this season in comparison to Cardiff and the Ospreys.
"We all know and accept that performances and results this year haven't been at the standard that you or we would want," said Daniels. "All clubs have been hit (by budget cuts) but because of where we were at at that time and the way the funding model was configured we were the highest funded at that time and now it's an equally funded model.
"So, that's something we've been managing." Peel went on to say that while beating their Welsh rivals was important, the Scarlets had to look beyond local rivalries by targeting reaching the United Rugby Championship play-offs over the coming seasons.
Nearly all of the questions were forthright, with one asking why the Scarlets had previously re-signed players who were out of form or past their best.
Daniels revealed contracts could be mutually terminated but some of the more senior players were crucial to the overall environment, while Peel pointed out the need to develop new leaders on the field after a plethora of experienced players had left the club over the past two seasons. Fans were clearly concerned at the future existence of the Scarlets amid fears the club could be culled if cutting a professional side was part of the Welsh Rugby Union's strategy.
While the strategy will be published by the end of June, Muderack was confident it would largely be formed by the end of April and insisted they were at a "critical" period. He went on to say the club game had been treated like a "second class citizen" and the union thought the talent would flow up to the international game regardless.
Muderack was adamant this had to be revisited and was a fundamental part of the conversation all four professional clubs in Wales are currently having with the WRU. He revealed everything was on the table and said there had been no discussions about merging with the Ospreys.
"If I look at the club and I look at the world of rugby I do believe that the world of rugby will change. We will restructure the game, not just within Wales but at club level, at league level.
"There's certainly work to be done and an opportunity looking at PRL and URC and also the role of Europe, how that comes into play."
One question around the club's recently announced restructure (you can read about that here) asked whether the Scarlets were rewarding failure and how the newly created role of rugby performance director will help.
"Growing the performance will be enhanced and improved with the performance director role," said Daniels.
"The job spec is with all the relevant agencies across the globe. We've had a great response already with a mix of people with experience of mostly rugby, but there's been interest in terms of performance from other sports as well.
"Responses have come from across the globe. To date we are in double figures with the number of applications received and only one of those is Welsh and he hasn't worked in the Welsh game for over 15 years."
When they opened up the floor to questions they became far harsher, with one question asking Daniels whether the Scarlets' fall from grace sat at his door or the coaching team. Muderack insisted everyone at the club had to take responsibility but was confident the restructuring of the management team would lead to improved results.
By the end of the night the supporters had got many things off their chest and hadn't shied away from the tough questions which needed to be asked, while the Scarlets management answered every question in full. To those who were there it was clear the Scarlets were not burying their heads in the sand and were facing up to the dire situation they have found themselves in this season.
It seems appointing the right man as rugby performance director is of paramount importance if the west Walians are to recover over the next couple of seasons.
