Rugby Football Union face England player revolt

Pain game: Martin Johnson looks forlorn after England's World Cup exit

10 April 2012

The increasingly fraught attempts to clean up rugby's tarnished image have been further undermined after it emerged today some players intend to boycott all three proposed reviews into England's ill-fated World Cup campaign in New Zealand.

Standard Sport has learned that some members of the squad have ignored approaches from both the Rugby Football Union and the Rugby Players' Association calling on them to provide information, in confidence, regarding their experiences at the tournament.

One member of Martin Johnson's 30-man party revealed: "It's ridiculous. There are so many reviews and inquiries going on I've lost count.

"There's too much talking and too much trash talking.

"I'm completely fed up with it. I've had some phone calls and requests to speak to the RFU and RPA but I'm not getting involved. I'm not telling tales out of school. I've spoken to some of the other England players and they're not interested either."

As it stands, three separate reviews are being carried out by three different bodies. Operations director Rob Andrew is heading the RFU's investigation into the performance of Johnson, his management team and the players in New Zealand, where England were eliminated at the quarter-final stage having barely fired a shot in anger.

Former England captain Fran Cotton is leading up an independent review into the entire England structure, which could entail Andrew being sacked before he is even able to deliver his own findings.

Cotton also appeared to compromise his claim to be wholly independent in the lead up to his appointment last week when he labelled England's World Cup campaign a "failure" before questioning the progress made in the three years since Johnson took over.

Five players were this week due to be called before the RFU's legal officer, Karena Vleck, regarding their code of conduct, with James Haskell having already done so before he returned to Japan from New Zealand.

To complicate matters further, respected chief executive Damian Hopley last week confirmed the RPA, who represent the players' interests, would be "conducting detailed responses from the entire England squad," before reporting back to the Professional Game Board.

The flurry of reviews have been prompted by England's shambolic performances, on and off the field, in New Zealand which saw players and management heavily criticised for a seemingly endless list of disciplinary issues.

Meanwhile, Leicester director of rugby, Richard Cockerill, has added to the growing disquiet over England's World Cup campaign by questioning the medical treatment of scrum-half Ben Youngs.

The 21-year-old will miss Friday night's Premiership game with Sale and is doubtful for next month's opening rounds of the Heineken Cup after suffering a recurrence of the knee injury sustained in a wrestling exercise with England in June.

Having missed all three warm-up games following surgery, Youngs returned for the opening World Cup pool win over Argentina but struggled for form throughout the tournament.

Cockerill said: "His knee is not great and he needs to do more rehab on it. At the moment he's not fit to play. I have to be careful what I say. His knee is not in ideal condition and has not been rehabbed thoroughly."

Leicester's executive director, Peter Wheeler, said: "We must be sure our players are looked after."

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Rugby Football Union face England player revolt

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