AND SO the talk returns of turning Newport Gwent Dragons into a development region, a Connacht if you will.

This week a BBC documentary pointed out what everyone already knew about regional rugby – attendances are low, kick-off times are all over the place, marketing is poor, money is tight, most people in Nelson don’t follow the Dragons.

It featured Welsh Rugby Union chief executive Roger Lewis suggesting that the funding model could change.

He mooted the possibility of the four regions having four different relationships with the WRU, perhaps no longer receiving equal funding.

On the face of it the Dragons are in a difficult situation.

As well as the funding from the WRU they get their share of the money from television and the LV= Cup.

However, they also get the same amount as their three rivals from European competition (despite being in the Challenge rather than Heineken Cup) and funding for access for Wales players (despite having just two members of Warren Gatland’s current squad, though five did go to the World Cup).

Recent high-profile departures to France have added weight to the argument that a new financial model is needed that will keep the best young Welsh talent in Wales.

Central contracts are a no-goer – the WRU simply doesn’t have the money (a fact that doesn’t prevent some from mystifyingly talking about establishing a fifth region).

However, it is dangerous to play the short game, create more financial instability and alienate a huge area.

Just two seasons ago the Dragons finished above the Scarlets, who made it into the Heineken Cup thanks to the Blues’ Challenge Cup win.

At the end of the last campaign Darren Edwards’ team were being tipped to do well this term. The failure to build on that momentum and proximity to bottom club Aironi only provides ammunition to the critics that say things aren’t working out east.

But perhaps a tinkering of the financial model could actually shake things up and make things work for the Dragons.

Reward regions financially depending on how many internationals they produce and there is an incentive to produce them rather than sitting back and collecting the same cash as others.

The Dragons are excited about their current crop of under-18s who dominate their international age group.

Maybe there needs to be more financial incentive to ensure the pathways get the best out of that talent.