Despite financial success, 2011 will be remembered for the World Cup failure
© Getty Images
|
The Daily Telegraph's Gavin Mairs provides his take on the RFU's recent financial review and their attempt to paper over the cracks in the organisation
"The Rugby Football Union has exposed itself to further ridicule after chairman Paul Murphy wrote in the governing body’s annual report published on Monday that "it is clear that the union and its staff have been operating at the top of their game."
Murphy remarkably chose to gloss over the political turmoil and succession of bloody coups that resulted in the sacking of John Steele as chief executive and forced Martyn Thomas to resign first as chairman and then earlier this month as acting chief executive officer under the threat of a special general meeting.
Pressure from sports minister Hugh Robertson has also forced the RFU to carry out an independent review of its corporate governance in response to criticisms contained in the Blackett report into Steele’s sacking. But Murphy insisted that RFU staff “have not been distracted by recent challenges” and that “the record achievements of the RFU and its staff in the past year deserve much praise”.
RSS feed
