https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/rugby-union/60815649" rel="nofollow - https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/rugby-union/60815649

If this is how the RFU treats England supporters (and they really, really care about the £££s spent by England Supporters) it must now be obvious to everyone involved with the club game in England below the Premiership that perhaps the RFU is not being entirely transparent in its pronouncements and actions regarding the club game in England............

Now the BBC has said it perhaps the RFU may just start to show some humility

The BBC rugby pundits were scathing for the lack of respect shown by the RFU in the spin pushed out by the RFU in that Press Announcement. Perhaps now RFU apologists will wake up to the real nature of the RFU.

Some of this post may have been influenced by the best part of a bottle of red, but I'm on holiday, so it's allowed!

French shirt numbers had names of community clubs printed on them - mentioned during game many times that FFR acknowledge the contribution of junior clubs.

Premiership are like a trawler picking up everything and discarding what they don't want. My son was disillusioned by the treatment as a 15 yo by Saints - but I suspect it's standard ......

Sad that it takes a Welshman to highlight RFU inconsistencies (polite word)

He is no closer to knowing who his best team is, what tactics to employ or have a plan B in case those tactics go wrong. We have no attacking flair in the side and no evidence that we can find it. 

When an organisation spews out propoganda that is so obviously a fiction you know something is very very wrong. When and how will the RFU be brought to account by the community clubs.

Abraham Lincoln in his Gettysburg address set out the solution

And where are they now!

The 2015 World Cup was a disaster, and highlighted the lack of talent development within the RFU, which has not been fixed.

I know the RFU sacked Stuart, bot for the other three, did they sack them, or did Eddie have them replaced?

So you think maybe we should pay a 6 figure sum?

Camquin, being fair and even handed apart from actually winning the world cup in 2019, what else could Jones and the English players do? Jones was hailed as a breath of fresh air during the four years leading up to the 2019 world cup.

In my view what needs fixing in the RFU was raised by Will Carling years ago "Get rid of the OLD FARTS that run the English game"

The problem is the senior management of the RFU who in my view 'manage' the 67 members of the Executive Council to ensure the Senior RFU Management get their agenda through. The Executive Council which represents the Constituent Bodies appear to act as an insulating bulwark protecting the RFU management from sanctions by the Community Clubs.

Here is the RFU Constitution

https://www.englandrugby.com/about-rfu/structure-of-the-rfu" rel="nofollow - https://www.englandrugby.com/about-rfu/structure-of-the-rfu

   ...... reading that shows how toothless the Executive Council is

I explained that in reality 'absence of support' was a euphemism for downright loathing and opprobrium that was voiced unbidden by most I had met. I could tell that my friend thought I was being a little overzealous in my condemnation.

As if on cue the Taunton President got to his feet and adeptly eviscerated the RFU before entertaining us with some very witty repartee,  Proper rugby man, so clearly incensed by the disregard the duplicitous RFU has for everything outside the Premiership and the international game.

I gave my friend a 'told you' glance...........if only Bill Sweeney had been there to receive the contempt personally.

Afterwards we all enjoyed a fabulous game of National 1 rugby between 2 good attacking sides. If the RFU continues its course of enriching the handful of Premiership Clubs  at the expense of its other 2,000+ clubs there may not be many more such contests

Nat 1 is a fantastic league - it should be left as it is, as should the next levels down.

I think you might find these 3 new leagues split in half pretty quickly. Within that 42 you will have 12 or 13 clubs promoted from Level 5 plus the 6 clubs who have escaped relegation from Level 4 (total 18 or 19 clubs of the 42 who will be perceived to be "weaker" - that remains to be seen but it does mean on average there will be 6 or 7 of these clubs in each of the 3 new leagues so hypothetically 8 "established" clubs and 6 "weaker" clubs in each division

Might not work out that way but highly likely I would say. Having said that we will be one of those "weaker" clubs and we can't wait to give it a go - you might be surprised!! 

Therein lies the rub.

There was a perceived demand to reduce travel, but it is very hard to do that without reducing quality or playing teams more than twice in a season.

And in every suggestion some club will be disadvantaged, and will cry foul.

I believe this reorganization fails to achieve what it sets out to do, but I have not had time, energy or money to prove that.

We are being sol motherhood and apple pie

but are getting the wicked stepmother and her poisoned apples.

I was going to try to link to images, but could not get it to work.