It’s one of the most monumental moves in the history of Welsh rugby and also one of the most contentious.

We know now we are heading towards a merger of arch rivals the Scarlets and the Ospreys, amid a radical restructuring of the regional game that will see the creation of a new pro team in North Wales from next season.

So how have we got to this point, what will the new merged West Wales team be called, where will they play, how have fans reacted and what will it mean for the staff of the two regions?

Rugby correspondent SIMON THOMAS looks to answer these and other key questions.

You can follow live updates on this story here .

Why is this merger taking place?

It’s the culmination of months of deliberation over the future of the regional game in Wales, sparked by financial issues off the field and limited success on it.

Those discussions have been driven by the Professional Rugby Board, the joint body, made up of regional and WRU representatives, who now run the pro game.

All options have been considered as part of the much talked about Project Reset, with nothing off the table.

But it’s become increasingly apparent in recent weeks that the preference was for a new structure, with teams in the North, West, South and East.

The logic seems to be that the North is seen as an area of potential growth both commercially and in terms of support, with a catchment area of some 750,000, no top level sport and probable private and public investment available.

At the same time, it appears questions were raised over whether west Wales could continue to sustain two professional teams.

What was mathematically clear is creating a pro side in the North means the number of teams in the south having to be reduced from four to three...and that’s where things really became complicated.

There were initial talks over a possible merger between the Scarlets and Ospreys, but those came to nothing.

Then the focus switched to a link up between the Ospreys and Cardiff Blues, but the Blues decided not to pursue negotiations after looking at the economics.

The Ospreys and the Scarlets merger explained
The Ospreys and the Scarlets merger explained

That led to huge uncertainty over the future of the Ospreys, amid reports of them being in a precarious financial position.

It even reached the dramatic point where their players were told the region may cease to exist.

Then came the announcement that they would definitely continue next season, but with no guarantees beyond that.

Now has come the fresh twist. It’s understood the Ospreys met with the Scarlets again last week and the merger plan was resurrected.

Then yesterday afternoon it was all confirmed as the staff of both regions were told about the link up, with the new structure to be put in place for next season.

The PRB are now meeting today to vote on the move which would then go to the WRU board for final ratification.

Barring any late change of heart or dispute, it looks to be happening.

What will the new West Wales team be called?

That’s a huge issue.

You may ask what’s in a name, well an awful lot in this case.

There has been speculation that this will prove to be more of a takeover than a merger, with the far more solidly-placed Scarlets the dominant partner.

So might the Scarlets name be retained?

If so, then that would alienate all of the Ospreys fans.

But if they go for a completely new name, such as the West Wales Warriors, that would likely alienate both sets of supporters.

You could go with the diplomatic option of the Scarlet Ospreys, but teams tend to be shortened to one name and then there’s the question of what supporters would chant.

Various other titles have been suggested on social media, such as the Sospan Jacks and even, with tongue in cheek, Western Farce.

But this is clearly no laughing matter, with people’s livelihoods on the line.

The naming is serious business and an absolutely key decision.

Where will the team play and what will their kit look like?

Everything points to the majority of games being played at Parc y Scarlets, for cost and commercial reasons.

The Scarlets own the leasehold interest on the ground, which gives them exclusive use and possession for 100-plus years.

There are also no issues with potential clashes with football which you sometimes have with the Ospreys and Swanses City at the Liberty Stadium.

There could be a case for staging big European matches at the larger capacity Liberty, but it seems roads will lead to Llanelli the majority of the time.

As for the kit, logic would point to some mixture of the current colours - red, white and black - but it remains to be seen what they will come up with.

What will happen to the players?

The bottom line is you have two squads which will have to be streamlined into one, so there will be a number of players wondering about their futures.

You would imagine contracts already in place for next season would be honoured and those people retained.

It’s players who are out of contract who face the most uncertain time.

Realistically, a significant number of them are going to have to look for work elsewhere, which is easier said than done so late in the day.

Some might be offered contracts by the two other existing regions, while others may be given the chance to head north to Colwyn Bay.

Others, especially those who would consider themselves unlikely to receive the call from Wales, may well look to head for England and France.

Wales hooker and Players Association chairman Ken Owens on the charge for the Scarlets against the Ospreys

And will the 60-cap rule even be retained given the exceptional circumstances?

What’s certain is there is going to be some frenetic activity on the player movement front over the coming weeks.

You can only feel for the players and staff affected by the changes.

Welsh Rugby Players Association chairman Ken Owens has issued a strong statement today, referring to this as being the most challenging period any player has faced.

And the Association is calling for urgent consultation and for the players to have a representative on the PRB board.

The players are clearly unhappy with the situation and you can't blame them.

What’s the public reaction been?

It’s been overwhelmingly negative and especially so from fans of the Ospreys and Scarlets who are concerned about their teams, as they know them, effectively disappearing.

The finger of blame has been pointed squarely at the Welsh Rugby Union in all this.

Now Union chiefs will argue the planned changes are being pushed by the PRB, which is made up of the four regional chairman, two WRU executives and an independent chairman.

And Wales coach Warren Gatland has spoken out today, stressing the merger wasn't driven by the Union but by the regions concerned.

But, rightly or wrongly, the public perception has been that this is a WRU project and the flak is flying in their direction, particularly towards chief executive Martyn Phillips.

You've also seen Mike James resign as chairman of the Ospreys, citing the Union’s “catastrophic mismanagement” of Project Reset, which he has dubbed Project Inept.

Under-fire WRU chief executive Martyn Phillips

The issue which is particularly animating your average rugby fan is why are the two most successful sides in regional history having to merge while the Dragons are able to continue as they are?

That’s is the question I have been asked more than any other over the last 24 hours and it’s quite a hard one to answer.

The Ospreys have achieved more success than any other side in the regional era, winning four league titles and an Anglo-Welsh trophy.

The Scarlets have also had their highs, particularly so in recent years, winning the PRO12 in 2017 and reaching the Champions Cup semi-finals last season.

In contrast, the Dragons have been the perpetual poor relations of the regional era and are set to finish as the bottom-placed Welsh side for the twelfth time in 16 seasons.

So why are they avoiding the cull which could effectively hit the Ospreys, with a Scarlets takeover looking more likely than a merger?

That’s an issue which has animated people even more than the creation of a new side in the north.

Well, possibly there is an argument that east Wales can sustain two pro sides whereas west Wales can’t?

But does that really stack up. You haven’t seen people lining up to invest in the rebranded Dragons as of yet.

There’s the fact that there are 73 clubs in the Gwent area. But then there are 77 in the Ospreys catchment.

So inevitably you come back to the fact that the Dragons are Union-owned and they would be unlikely to bin the team less than two years after purchasing it and the Rodney Parade ground.

There is one other pertinent fact to consider.

The suggestion is we might move to a 2+2 funding model, with the new West Wales side and Cardiff Blues on full-fat status and the Dragons and North Wales on a semi-skimmed footing.

That would enable two of our teams to have genuinely competitive budgets and make a real push for the Champions Cup glory which has alluded Welsh rugby up to now.

And if you are planning to introduce graded payments, it’s probably a lot easier to implement if you own the two lesser funded sides.

How competition organisers and broadcasters would view two effectively downgraded teams is another matter.

Who will coach the new West Wales side?

Brad Mooar is on his way to Wales
Brad Mooar is on his way to Wales

Well, we know which coaches are under contract for next season, so we can make a pretty educated guess.

The Scarlets are bringing in Kiwi Brad Mooar from the Crusaders to replace the Wales-bound Wayne Pivac and he is likely to be a pivotal man in the new set up.

Stephen Jones is joining Pivac in the national set-up, so the Ospreys’ Matt Sherratt would be favourite to act as backs coach, with Allen Clarke also having a role to play, maybe focusing on the forwards along with Ioan Cunningham.

The Scarlets’ Byron Hayward is being touted to link up with Wales too, leaving Aussie Brad Davis as the likely defence coach of the new team.

How well supported will the new west Wales team be?

That’s another big question.

At present, there are some 12,000 regular fans of the two west Wales regions.

How many of them will transfer their support to the new entity and how many will walk away?

Again, the name is likely to be critical.

If the side retains the Scarlets branding and plays in Llanelli, you couldn’t see any Ospreys fans heading west.

And if both brands are ditched in favour of a totally new one, you could have more than 10,000 people turning their backs on the pro game.

The powers-that-be would argue that if a star-studded West Wales team is winning matches regularly and challenging for silverware, then people would turn up, regardless of the name.

Only time will tell on that front.

What we do know is we will lose the two west Wales derbies, which are among the best-attended and highest earning games of the season.

That, in itself, takes some getting used to.

Scarlets and Ospreys players in the derby earlier this season
Highly-charged derbies between the Scarlets and Ospreys will become a thing of the past

Can the new structure really be put in place for next season?

Well, it’s going to be a challenge.

Trimming the playing squads and staff of the two west Wales outfits into one unit is going to be far from easy and it could be a painful process.

But setting up a new professional outfit in North Wales is arguably even more testing.

You have just a matter of months to put together a squad capable of competing in the PRO14, with all the issues that throws up.

Players would have to be persuaded to relocate to North Wales and gelling a completely new team together in such a short space of time will be a huge task.

One also wonders what will happen to RGC 1404?

How many of their semi-pro squad would be offered places within the new pro set-up?

And will RGC continue as a Premiership club or might the plan be for North Wales to operate an A team like the regions in the south.

Could you have a pro squad able to supply a senior outfit and an A team, while also running a Premierships side, all operating out of Colwyn Bay?

Stadiwm Zip Wire, in Colwyn Bay, where the new North Wales team will be based

Also would it be possible to upgrade Stadiwm Zip Wire to increase the 6,000 capacity in time, maybe with temporary facilities in the short term?

Then there’s the question of the coaching team. Mark Jones is currently the man in charge at RGC and you could well see him stepping up to the regional side.

And then what about the idea of north Walian Robin McBryde coming on board after the World Cup?

As for how many people will turn out to support the new side, it’s hard to say but there’s certainly a real enthusiasm and appetite among rugby folk up north, with the potential for a new audience being attracted by the project.

How will Champions Cup qualification be decided?

Good question!

What happens if both the Scarlets and Ospreys qualify for Europe's elite event via the PRO14 at the end of this season?

Would that be viewed as just one team getting through, giving the impending merger, or would another Welsh gain entry as a result?

As with so many issues, we can only wait and see. It's certainly a tangled web.