The Welsh Rugby Union looks on course for another dispute with the country's leading rugby clubs.

A few weeks after wrecking proposals for a reduced Premier Division, the WRU has now upset the clubs over plans for youth academies.

The idea promoted by WRU director of rugby Terry Cobner is that eight Premiership clubs would run under-18 academies to train the brightest young players under the union's guidance.

But the union is understood to be insisting on the players playing for the designated local club for their area - and that appears to be the main stumbling block.

There was early suggestion that this rule would also extend to under-21 players, but that idea appears to have been quashed.

The fact the academies would also face each other just once a month - with the players playing for their local youth or school side in between - is also causing concern.

Cardiff, Newport and Swansea - the big city clubs - are known to be unhappy with the current state of the scheme.

They are especially unimpressed with the union's offer of less than �50,000 a year to run their academies.

Delicate stage

English premier clubs are given far more money from the Rugby Football Union to fund their youth development work.

The Welsh clubs were reluctant to comment on the matter since the negotiations with the WRU are now at such a delicate stage.

But Pontypridd director of rugby Clive Jones did say that "the academy concept with an educational aspect is too good to lose for the future of Welsh rugby.

"But there are problems with its implementation."