RFU Council 'likely to reject 80 per cent' of controversial review amid fears of power grab !

This was litterally just posted...!

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/rugbyunion/international/england/8929822/RFU-Council-likely-to-reject-80-per-cent-of-controversial-review-amid-fears-of-power-grab.html


The Rugby Football Union council is almost certain to reject “80 per cent” of the controversial review into the governing body's corporate governance, and a vote on many of the recommendations may be delayed until 2013, a councillor warned on Thursday night.

“The non-controversial parts will go before the next council meeting in February so they can go before the game at the annual general meeting next July. The more controversial recommendations are going to require a lot of work to be done to get the clubs on board and I can’t see them doing so until the AGM in 2013.”

Suprise,Suprise,after the waffle onWednesday of the the way forward England.
Now after an in depth report on RFU itself,it is likely to reject most of the findings,or at least postpone discussion for another 18 months.
The idea of long standing Members being axed with all the perks therein gone,in favour of Women or Ethnic Minorities to be PC.
Also Clubs ,won`t like the phasing out of there Twickenham,ticket allocation rights.
Blackett and his report are now likely a thing of the past,THERE are many un self- seeking Members.
On the board interested in Englands future even at the grass roots level,theres just as many with a snouts in the trough attitude.
On Wednesday some positives were annouced,most obvious a Caretaker set of Coaches for the 6Ns.Then A new set of Coaches appointed,money no object.A Manager to deal with the day to day non-Rugby aspects.Reminding the players of there off field responsibilities,and clamping down on Agents being at major tournaments.
Teflon Man dodges the Bullet again,no longer responsible for the First team etc.£400,000 is a lot of cash for managing youth,Saxons,and links to Clubs.
IF he has any input in picking the Coaches,after his last efforts were in BIG trouble.
Most of Wednesdays Comments were a mix of Whitewash and Commonsense.
The apologies for Englands RWC performance,what was that about?
Yes there were off field incidents? dealt with perhaps unfairly,yes there was
a case of players trying to maximise the RWC earnings for themselves.
BUT,did that mean they did`nt try on the field,leaks of players blaming Coaches,and Coaches blaming players was like playing pass the parcel.
England won there Group,a difficult one in as much as both Scotland,and Argentina made it difficult to break them down.
Having won the 6Ns playing flowing Rugby,based on Flood at 10,why revert to Wilkinson in the RWC.
Great Player that he was,he has`nt been that for some time,and his Goal kicking was`nt up to par.
I wonder what realistically was the expectations in a RWC with a young side,as opposed to History.
Selection and the RWC formula ,Defence,keep the score board ticking without a kicker.Was always going to be difficult,it seems RWC s drag all sides down to the same level.
Englands Coaches were criticised,Brian Smith Attack Coach had no idea.?
He `d worked with the Australian sides in the role so that is debatable.
Defence Coach,ideas don`t work,England conceded fewest tries of all major sides.
KIcking Coach,no one had any problems with him pre RWC,Ball fixing meant he was off limits for awhile.
The Ball caused problems for the round the corner kickers,more than the old fashioned toe poke kickers .
Apart from those who have resigned Johnson and Smith ,the fate of the others has not been annouced.
Stories of players returning to Clubs unfit,conflict with others stating some returned beating there personal best.
Presumably the difference being in Aerobic Fitness,as opposed to Gym Monkey fitness.
What was`nt said was how the RFU had failed to support both Ashton and Martin Johnson with the right back up staff.
OR admit the RFU was a lot of the problem which it was and is.
2003 and SCW cast a long shadow,he along with Geoff Cooke and Jack Rowell overachieved with win rates in the 71-74 % range.
Englands STATS since 1903 is 55%.only France with 55.6% is better in a NH side Wales is 50%,Scotland and Ireland about 44%.
BUT Ashton at 54-5% ,and Johnson 55 % BOTH were about average for an England side.

Well that's the least surprising thing I've seen since the sun went down yesterday.

It doesn't, however, stop me from feeling massively frustrated at the lengths to which these dinosaurs will go to protect their own well-feathered nests, even to the extent that they will put their own interests before the game itself, the game that actually gives them a "purpose" in the first place.

The idea that the Council should be representative? Preposterous, clearly.

How about democratic? Ridiculous in the extreme, apparently.

Streamlined and efficient in these times of great austerity? Nonsense man, mere piffle!

The fat cats at the RFU aren't just overfed, they're becoming morbidly obese and their greed and overbearing ideas of self-importance will continue to waste the resources and talent of our sport, through the never-ending cycles of clueless committee meetings, pointless enquiries and prevarication on the results, until something is done to stop them.

It's not so much like Nero fiddling while Rome burns as Nero doing the rounds with a gallon of unleaded in a jerry can.

It's quite clear that the real power resides with the professional clubs, they invest in their own academies, produce the talent, nurture it and provide a platform on which the talent can perform on a regular basis. In return the clubs are fed scraps from the RFU table, the talent is taken away from them without so much as a by-your-leave, and paraded as "England's Finest" at games and events that the RFU make millions from, most of it from corporate hospitality where most of those enjoying it wouldn't know the difference between a penalty and a free-kick.

Meanwhile, the clubs have to put out second string sides, the fans get to watch sub-standard performances after paying top-standard prices, and when the RFU are done with the talent, they return it to the clubs in a poor state of repair and promptly betray said talent by allowing their personal observations to become common knowledge.

When a report into the entire sordid affair is produced they decide to sit on it for 18 months in the hope that it will go away!

You couldn't make it up, nobody would believe you if you did.

The Council are scared of the power the clubs have and it's about time the clubs started to wield it I'm afraid. It should start with an insistence on democracy within the RFU and the immediate foundation of a one-member one-vote system. At least then we can all become members and have a proper say in how our sport is run, I'm sick to the back teeth of the BS coming out of HQ, it's been going on for too long now and the current penchant for Board and Council members shooting each other in the face whilst ignoring the elephant in the room makes English rugby nothing more or less than a JOKE!

I'm really quite annoyed.