Andrew RFU Rugby Role Changed

The Rugby Football Union have on Wednesday revealed that England's elite rugby director Rob Andrew is to be appointed as the organisation's professional rugby director.

Andrew came into strong criticism after keeping hold of his job following the recent disappointing Rugby World Cup performances in New Zealand.

The former England fly-half twice stated that he would not be resigning but at a press conference at Twickenham, his new role was announced.

His new position will not involve direct contact with the senior team but he will have responsibility for other representative teams and the relationship with Premiership Rugby, with Ian Metcalfe, chairman of the PGB, insisting that Andrew's change of position was in no way a demotion.

"I don't think it's a demotion at all," he said.

"One of the ways we failed Rob is not explaining the breadth of what he is trying to do.

"He has a significant contribution to continue to make."

The RFU will appoint an interim coach to lead the national team into next year's Six Nations Championship while it searches for a permanent replacement for the outgoing Johnson.

The governing body revealed that Johnson's successor will be named in time for the tour of South Africa in June, and will report directly to the RFU's new chief executive, who will be appointed by the turn of the year.

The interim coach will be hired before England's Six Nations squad is named on January 11. Meanwhile, acting chief executive Stephen Brown had opened matters by apologising.

"The most important thing is to make an apology to everyone involved in rugby for the performance of the World Cup and the surrounding events," Brown said.

"We've let ourselves down as a sport and as a team. It's important we recognise that and take some action going forward.

"Standards were below what we expect, we had a number of off-pitch disciplinary matters and that attracted a lot of negative coverage which we regret.

"We need to fix this going forward and make sure we are in a better place going into 2015 and the report is aimed to do that."

Rowntree and Lancaster for 6 Nations

The Rugby Football Union will not name a new permanent England coach until after next year's Six Nations, BBC Sport understands.

Current assistant Graham Rowntree and Saxons head coach Stuart Lancaster will take temporary charge for the tournament starting in February.

The RFU wants a full-time replacement for Martin Johnson in place before England tour South Africa in June.

Nick Mallett and Jim Mallinder are among those tipped for the role.

Northampton director of rugby Mallinder has declared an interest in the job, while former Italy and South Africa coach Mallett said he would consider it but not until after the Six Nations.

Also in the running are Jake White and Eddie Jones, who jointly coached South Africa to win the 2007 World Cup, and two former All Blacks who are now established coaches, John Kirwan and Wayne Smith.

England's director of elite rugby Rob Andrew will lead the search for Johnson's replacement.

Former Leicester and England prop Rowntree, 40, is a familiar face in the recent national set-up, having been appointed by the RFU as a specialist coach in June 2007 before becoming assistant to Martin Johnson in August 2008.

He was one of the few figures to emerge with any credit from recent leaked World Cup reports into England's poor showing at the World Cup.

Ex-Leeds back-rower Lancaster was appointed as the RFU's Head of Elite Player Development in 2007 following a spell as director of rugby with the Yorkshire club.

He has also been Saxons head coach for the last three years.

Johnson resigned as England manager after a troubled World Cup campaign in New Zealand, which saw his team beaten by France in the quarter-finals and involved in a string of off-field controversies.

The RFU is currently in crisis following the leaking of the World Cup reports.

On Tuesday, chief executive Martyn Thomas - who had previously announced his intention to leave the RFU on 16 December - vacated the role with immediate effect, with Stephen Brown filling the vacancy on a temporary basis.

Former England coach Sir Clive Woodward, who led the side to World Cup success in 2003, said recently that the RFU should wait until a new chief executive is in place before making a decision on a new coach.

Woodward Defends Departed Johnson

Former England coach Sir Clive Woodward has accused the Rugby Football Union of letting Martin Johnson down and insisted "someone should really be accountable for that".

Johnson stood down as the national team manager on Wednesday after England's disappointing World Cup campaign, which ended with a quarter-final defeat to France.

England's World Cup-winning captain was recruited by the RFU in 2008 despite having no coaching experience and Woodward, who led an England side captained by Johnson to World Cup glory in 2003, believes he should have been given greater support.

Rob Andrew, the RFU's elite rugby director, was Johnson's immediate line manager and Woodward questioned why Twickenham's top brass allowed England to fail at the World Cup before taking any action.

"Basically I feel quite sorry for Martin Johnson because if you are asked to coach England you are going to say 'yes'," said Woodward on Rugby Club Special

"Let's be brutally honest, he had no coaching experience, no managerial experience, so it was a huge risk by those who put him in.

"I just don't feel they put anybody alongside him to help him, to negate that risk, to make sure that the risk was worth taking.

"He's an iconic figure, he's a brilliant guy, but that didn't seem to fit very comfortably with him.

"The England players need to know the RFU is putting in the very, very best because you only get one shot at this.

"We've just allowed a rookie manager to just run his own ship for three and a half years without any real analysis, assessment.

"I think that is so so wrong and someone should really be accountable for that."

Andrew presented his review of England's World Cup campaign to the Professional Game Board on Thursday, which will not make any recommendations to the RFU board until November 30.

It is understood Andrew's own role in the England set-up was set to come under scrutiny in a meeting chairman Ian Metcalfe described as "robust".

Woodward questioned the need for such an extensive review process, arguing Johnson's superiors should already know what issues existed within the England squad.

"That's why I'm a little bit baffled," Woodward said. "They've lost in the quarter-final, we've now got reviews...how long ago since the World Cup?

"If you're on top of this, the people who are making those judgments should be reporting back to the management board at Twickenham almost within days.

"They should know exactly what's going on within the England team, not just with Martin but with all the coaching team. They should know inside out what is happening. Then you can make judgements.

"If you are really on top of it then you should make these changes, you haven't got to wait until the World Cup.

"We shouldn't have to wait for a bad situation happening and then have this reaction."

Andrew will now oversee the recruitment of Johnson's replacement, the fourth England head coach during his five-year tenure at Twickenham.

Woodward urged the RFU to take their time, set up an interim England management team to take care of the Six Nations and concentrate on making the right appointment.

The next England coach will be charged with leading the team into the 2015 World Cup on home soil.

Woodward believes the appointment should not be made by committee, but on the recommendation of one man who has the faith of the incoming new chief executive.

"We've got this huge issue coming up now, who is the next England coach? What are the right criteria?

"We can't get it wrong, because I think we have got this one wrong. In Martin's own words, it's not gone well."

Woodward is not in the frame to return to Twickenham as England coach - but he remains a potential candidate to run the RFU's Professional Rugby department.

Andrew is currently fulfilling that brief but he has not been officially appointed into the position.

"To be very clear I've got no wish to coach England again," said Woodward, who is currently performance director at the British Olympic Association.

"In terms of post-Olympics, I think you'll find in British sport there's going to be a huge amount of changes, there will be all sorts of opportunities all over the place."

Tindall Fined and Out of Elite Squad

Mike Tindall has been removed from England's Elite Player Squad and fined £25,000 following events in New Zealand during the recent World Cup campaign.

The Rugby Football Union has also announced £5,000 suspended fines for wing Chris Ashton and back-row forward James Haskell and warned them about their future conduct.

Hooker Dylan Hartley, though, has been cleared.

A statement on the RFU website read: 'The Rugby Football Union has taken the following disciplinary action regarding breaches of the England Elite Player Squad Agreement during the 2011 Rugby World Cup

Mike Tindall has been removed from the England Elite Player Squad with immediate effect and fined £25,000 for his conduct around the events that took place in Queenstown on the night of Sunday, September 11, 2011

Chris Ashton has been fined £5,000 (fine suspended until December 31, 2012), for his part in the events in Dunedin on Friday, 

September 9, 2011 and warned as to his future conduct

James Haskell has been fined £5,000 (fine suspended until December 31, 2012), for his part in the events in Dunedin on Friday, September 9, 2011 and warned as to his future conduct 

Dylan Hartley has been cleared of being involved in the exchange of inappropriate language which led to allegations of wrongdoing against himself, Chris Ashton and James Haskell, in Dunedin on Friday, September 9, 2011

'The sanctions follow appearances by the players before the RFU’s Professional Rugby Director Rob Andrew and Legal and Governance Director Karena Vleck.'

The 33-year-old Tindall has won more than 70 caps, captained his country and featured in the 2003 World Cup-winning squad. Earlier this year, he married the Queen's granddaughter Zara Phillips.

Tindall, who is set to start for Gloucester against Toulouse on Sunday, was pictured with a woman at a bar in Queenstown, and then later admitted misleading England management about events during the evening.

England manager Martin Johnson then had to reprimand three players - Haskell, Ashton and Hartley - later in the trip for making inappropriate comments to a female hotel worker in Dunedin. The trio were forced to formally apologise.

RFU director of elite rugby Rob Andrew said: 'We have considered all the evidence carefully and interviewed the players at length. These actions have not been taken lightly but we believe that in all these cases the sanctions are commensurate with the level of seriousness of what occurred.

'Mike Tindall’s actions reached a level of misconduct that was unacceptable in a senior England player and amounted to a very serious breach of the EPS Code of Conduct. Whilst we acknowledge his previous good character it needs to be made clear that what he did will not be tolerated.

'Regarding the events in Dunedin, it should be stressed that the allegations of very serious wrong-doing made against Chris Ashton, Dylan Hartley and James Haskell by Annabel Newton, a member of staff at the team hotel, were entirely false. We do not believe the players had any intention to sexually harass or intimidate Ms Newton.

'However, the incident is precisely the kind of dangerous, compromising situation the players were warned about prior to departure for New Zealand and that they were specifically told to avoid in the EPS Code of Conduct.

'While we found that Dylan Hartley played no part in the ill-considered exchange with Annabel Newton, Chris Ashton and James Haskell’s behaviour on September 9 did breach the EPS Code of Conduct and they have each been given suspended fines of £5,000. If they commit any further breaches of the Code before December 31, 2012 the fines will become due.

'Finally, these episodes and the subsequent disciplinary action should stand as a strong reminder that the highest standards of personal conduct are expected from any England player on and off the field.'

The players have the right to appeal to the RFU acting chief executive within three working days from Friday.

Thomas Steps Down from RFU Roles

Acting chief executive Martyn Thomas is to step down from all his positions at the Rugby Football Union after a meeting of the management board.

The former RFU chairman is also leaving as chairman of the organising committee for the 2015 World Cup in England.

Thomas will oversee the transition at the RFU until leaving on 16 December.

Thomas survived a vote of no confidence in September after threatening legal action should a report into the exit of predecessor John Steele be made public.

Chief financial officer Stephen Brown will take over as acting chief executive in December ahead of a permanent appointment, while a review led by Fran Cotton into England's performance at the Rugby World Cup has been scrapped.

Thomas said in a statement: "It has been an honour to be part of the Union, most particularly for the past six months as acting chief executive where I have been lucky enough to get to know better the RFU staff who work tirelessly for the good of the game.

"Stephen Brown for one has been a phenomenal addition to the executive team and, having got to know him very well over the last few months, I have total faith that he will provide the stability and leadership needed at this important time."

Thomas, who was elected as RFU chairman in 2005, had come under increasing pressure from the clubs that make up the body's membership.

The 67-year-old was criticised by the RFU disciplinary officer Judge Jeff Blackett in his investigation into Steele's resignation.

Steele left following clashes with the RFU board over the remit of a new elite performance director.

A series of changes in the job description were interpreted by many as in-fighting over the suitability of World Cup-winning coach Sir Clive Woodward for the post.

It was reported that 130 clubs sent a letter to current chairman Paul Murphy threatening to call a special general meeting to remove Thomas if the 12-man management board failed to ensure his departure on Wednesday.

After the announcement of Thomas' departure Murphy said in an RFU statement: "As a sport we face some exciting and challenging times leading up to 2015, which will be a massive opportunity for the game in this country and as a Union it is important that the leadership structure is in place as soon as possible.

"The recruitment of new chief executive is well under way with an appointment expected by 14 December."

The future of England team manager Martin Johnson remains in doubt.

Despite rugby operations manager Rob Andrew stating that a decision would be made "as quickly and as openly possible" in the wake of the team's quarter-final exit to France, it has not been announced if Johnson's contract will be extended beyond December.

On the field England do not have a captain after the international retirement of regular skipper Lewis Moody, although the team's next match is not until the meeting with Scotland in the Six Nations on 4 February.

THE LIST OF ROLES THOMAS IS LEAVING

RFU acting chief executive officer

England Rugby 2015 chairman

European Rugby Cup Ltd director

International Rugby Board Council member

Six Nations Committee member

Cotton Chairs Independent RFU Review

Fran Cotton has agreed to chair an independent review of the entire England structure at the Rugby Football Union, which will place fresh scrutiny on Rob Andrew's role at Twickenham.

Cotton, the former RFU vice-chairman, will lead a two or three-strong panel that will include at least one member with no rugby connections.

Cotton's team will be charged with reviewing the performance of the RFU's professional rugby department and assessing Andrew's own report into England's failed World Cup campaign.

The independent panel will undertake their review in November and then make recommendations to the RFU's management board and the council on December 2.

Andrew's current role is as Twickenham's rugby operations director and he has been nominally in charge of the whole England structure since the RFU failed to appoint a performance director.

That episode culminated in John Steele's departure as chief executive and led to another RFU management restructure.

Andrew announced on Sunday, as England reflected on their World Cup quarter-final defeat to France, that he had accepted the new position of professional rugby director.

That role was created to oversee the whole England set-up and the RFU's relationship with Premiership Rugby and the Championship – but Andrew's appointment is yet to be rubber-stamped.

Cotton's panel will have the power to recommend the person they believe should head up the professional rugby department.

That could be Andrew. But the fact he is not a guaranteed choice will also open the door to the possibility of Sir Clive Woodward returning to Twickenham as the new head of professional rugby.

Cotton was a leading critic of Steele's decision to change the job description of the performance director, which led to Woodward pulling out of contention.

He told BBC Radio Five Live at the time: ''It's probably the most important role in English rugby and world rugby and he's talking about downgrading the role to bring in Mr Average instead of Clive Woodward or (New Zealand coach) Graham Henry, the people England need.''

Cotton's panel will also have the power to recommend changes to the England team's management structure. Martin Johnson's contract expires on December 21 and he is currently considering his options.

It appears that if Johnson is to continue in charge until England host the World Cup in 2015, he may have to accept working in a new-look structure.

One potential outcome could be the appointment of a senior England team manager – in the mould of New Zealand's Darren Shand – who would be in charge of logistics but also team discipline.

Had England had a figure like that in place during the World Cup it would have been they who would have dealt with all the off-field disciplinary issues, leaving Johnson to focus on the rugby.

There is also a theory that the England head coach must have a closer working relationship with the professional rugby director, with the aim of creating a more challenging environment and greater accountability.

Cotton has branded England's World Cup campaign a ''failure'' and he claimed the squad had not improved on Johnson's watch and lacked leadership.

''We were knocked out in the quarter-finals and we played poorly throughout the competition. It is a failure as far as we are concerned,'' Cotton told Sky Sports News.

''Martin has now been in charge three-and-a-half years and it is very difficult to understand what style of play this England rugby team is all about.

''The basic skills of rugby at that level just aren't good enough and I haven't seen an improvement in the last three-and-a-half years.

''The players have got to take a huge responsibility. When they go on the pitch they are in charge of their own game and it was very obvious in this World Cup that there seems to be a lack of leadership.

''That is not a criticism of (captain) Lewis Moody, who has done a good job.

''Unfortunately Mike Tindall's incident – forget the incident with the lady in the bar – what concerned me is that one of the leading players and the captain at that time was out at two in the morning and obviously absolutely hammered.

''That is not part of a professional athlete's lifestyle and what example does that set to the younger players in the squad?''

Thomas Steps Down as RFU Chairman

Martyn Thomas has reportedly stepped down as chairman of the Rugby Football Union, however he will continue as acting chief executive at Twickenham, chairman of Rugby World Cup 2015 and as an RFU representative on the International Rugby Board.

Sunday's move followed a four-hour meeting of the RFU Council, which broke up at Twickenham around midday after discussing a review panel's 52-page verdict on the organisation's hiring.

The 58-man Council, it is understood, have decided that Paul Murphy will serve as interim RFU chairman, pending a Special General Meeting when Thomas' permanent replacement will be decided.

That meeting, though, cannot take place constitutionally for 60 days.

It is also understood that a vote of no confidence in the RFU management board was defeated by a majority verdict.

It is reported that Thomas also agreed not to put his name forward for election as chairman during Sunday's RFU annual general meeting, which is currently under way at Twickenham.

It is also known there were dissenting voices within the Council over his continuation as acting chief executive before it was agreed he should continue in that role.

It now means that less than nine weeks before the 2011 World Cup kicks off in New Zealand, the RFU has no permanent chairman, no permanent chief executive and are still searching for their first performance director.

The performance director job, a role created by Steele's review of the organisation earlier this year, had been thought to be tailor-made for England's 2003 World Cup-winning mastermind Sir Clive Woodward.

But during the course of a horribly bungled RFU process, Woodward reaffirmed commitment to his current employers the British Olympic Association.

Judge Jeff Blackett - the RFU's disciplinary officer - headed a five-man panel's detailed investigation surrounding the arrival and departure of Steele at Twickenham.

The management board ousted Steele from his post at an emergency meeting in June after deciding his position had become untenable.

According to Thomas at the time, Steele had lost the confidence of the board and key stakeholders in the game.

The review panel also comprised RFU council members Geraint Ashton Jones and Malcolm Wharton, plus Andy Reed, chairman-elect of the Sport and Recreation Alliance, and Vic Luck, formerly general manager of IBM UK.

They were due to probe everything from Steele's recruitment to the board's loss of confidence in his leadership and the process leading to the termination of his contract.

The botched recruitment process for the performance director position, which played such a key part in Steele's downfall, was also due for scrutiny, in addition to the board's governance.

It is thought the panel interviewed more than 65 key figures and took on board the conclusions of an earlier review of the performance director recruitment process, conducted by RFU chairman of governance Peter Baines.

Thomas was elected chairman of the RFU board of directors in April 2005. He had been elected to the RFU council four years earlier, representing Nottinghamshire, Lincolnshire and Derbyshire.

In 2007 he became one of two RFU representatives on the IRB and Six Nations Committee.

Thomas Continues RFU Acting CEO

The Rugby Football Union has temporarily rejigged its management structure until a new chief executive officer is appointed.

Martyn Thomas will continue as acting chief executive until a new CEO is in place, while senior non-executive Peter Baines steps in as chairman.

Thomas and Baines will revert to their previous positions when John Steele's successor starts.

Steele left his RFU post over the hunt for a new elite performance director.

This temporary structure has been put in place to address governance issues.

The search for a new CEO, which will be carried out by a panel, is expected to take between six to nine months.

By the end of the week the panel chairman is to be appointed.

Steele had removed overall responsibility for the senior England team from the job description for elite performance director, seemingly to block the possible return of 2003 World Cup-winning coach Sir Clive Woodward.

But that decision was reversed following an emergency meeting of the RFU board.

Woodward, currently director of sport at the British Olympic Association and deputy chef de mission for Team GB at London 2012, subsequently said he was not interested in a return to rugby union.

Melville Tweets RFU Job Interest

Nigel Melville

Former England captain Nigel Melville is to apply to be the Rugby Football Union's next chief executive.

The RFU is looking for a replacement for John Steele, who was ousted on Friday following a chaotic search for a new elite performance director.

Melville, who has coached Gloucester and Wasps, is currently president and chief executive of USA Rugby.

He wrote on Twitter: "I will apply for the ceo job, it's what I have been doing for the last four years."

The 50-year-old, whose playing career was blighted by a series of neck, shoulder, knee and ankle injuries, sent the message to RFU council member Andrew Sarek.

Melville, who has been in his role with USA Rugby since October 2006, had been on the RFU's early shortlist for the performance director position but withdrew from the running after deciding it was destined for Sir Clive Woodward.

"For the record they spoke to me, was on the short list, withdrew when I heard it was SCW's - so why bother.." Melville wrote in another message on Twitter.

World Cup-winning coach Woodward subsequently walked away from the recruitment process following the RFU's indecision about whether the job would include influence over the England team - which in turn led to the end of Steele's nine-month reign.

Simon Halliday, a former RFU councillor, and Malcolm Wall, who was beaten to the post by Steele, have also been mentioned as potential candidates for the job.

Steele Vows to Continue RFU Role

Brendan Steele

Chief executive John Steele has brushed off calls for his resignation over the Rugby Football Union's chaotic search for a new elite performance director.

Steele has come under pressure after he removed oversight of the senior England team from the job description.

But it was changed back following an emergency meeting of the RFU board.

"People who know me will tell you, when I set my mind to do something, as I have here, I will see it through," he told BBC Sport.

"When the hard times come we must not be derailed or distracted."

The RFU has struggled to recruit a performance director to stand alongside director of rugby operations Rob Andrew and development director Steve Grainger as part of a new management structure.

Steele, who was appointed in June 2010, had promised a "worldwide and multi-sport" search to fill the role, but the process has since been undermined with the job specification changing twice and interviews for the post reportedly postponed.

His decision to remove England's senior team from the performance director's remit was seen as an attempt to block the possible return of 2003 World Cup-winning coach Sir Clive Woodward.

Despite the RFU board, led by chairman Martyn Thomas, intervening to restore the original job specification, Woodward ruled himself out of the running for the role.

Former England captain Fran Cotton, who managed the British and Irish Lions during their series win over South Africa in 1997, has called for Steele to resign over the confusion.

While Steele admitted the search has not been conducted as he would have liked, he insisted that the speculation and criticism around the performance director role is out of proportion.

"I think anyone involved has been disappointed by the last few weeks, it is not what we want from our sport, there are no winners here, but it has happened and we need to make sure we understand why it has happened," he said.

"It is not a high-profile rugby supremo type role, it never has been," he added of the performance director role.

"It is all about what is happening behind the scenes, below the senior England team.

"There has been a lot of noise around this, a lot of it hasn't been objective and my job has been to put that aside and make sure the progress is right and to make sure we get the right person for the right job long-term."

Steele described his attempt to reform the RFU as "difficult" at times but added that he had been buoyed by events on and off the pitch since taking control in September.

"In my first weekend we saw the England ladies in the World Cup final, since then there has been a first Six Nations success in eight years, the women have had a Grand Slam, the under-20s have had a Grand Slam, we have had two English clubs [Harlequins and Northampton] in European finals," he stated.

"But beyond that within the organisation and out in the community we have seen a huge amount of passion for using 2015 [the year England hosts the World Cup] as a catalyst for positive change."

RFU Post Not For Clive Woodward

Sir Clive Woodward

Clive Woodward has issued a statement saying he will not attend interviews for the role of Rugby Football Union performance director.

Woodward, England's Rugby World Cup winning coach, has also stated that he is 'totally committed' to his role as director of sport at the British Olympic Association and deputy chef de mission for Team GB in London 2012.

In a statement released by the BOA, Woodward revealed he had participated in 'informal conversations' with RFU 'senior figures' with the full knowledge of BOA chairman Lord Colin Moynihan and chief executive Andy Hunt.

But he also confirmed he would not be attending interviews relating to the performance's director position.

Woodward said: 'Since the Rugby Football Union announced its restructuring plan late last year, there has been considerable speculation that I might return to the RFU.

'With the full knowledge of Colin Moynihan and Andy Hunt, I have had informal conversations regarding the role of performance director with senior figures at the RFU.

'However, I have not participated in a formal interview for this position at any stage in the RFU process.

'From the outset I made it clear to both Colin and Andy that I would only attend a formal interview with their full knowledge. I would like to express my thanks for their understanding over this situation, and also for their considered views which have been greatly appreciated.

'In order to prevent any further speculation, and in the interests of the both the BOA and RFU, I would like to formally confirm that I will not be attending any interviews for this position.'

Woodward added: 'I am totally committed to my role as director of sport at the British Olympic Association and deputy chef de mission for Team GB in London 2012.

'We have an historic opportunity ahead, when more than 500 of Britain's most accomplished Olympic athletes will represent Team GB, at home, in the London 2012 Games.

'May I wish the RFU all the best in its search to find the appropriate candidate for this very important role for English rugby, going forward.

'I would also like to take this opportunity to wish Martin Johnson, his coaching team and all of his players every success, but especially for this year's Rugby World Cup in New Zealand, which all rugby fans are looking forward to.'

The performance director position has proved a hot topic of debate in recent weeks at Twickenham and beyond, with Woodward widely backed for an RFU return almost seven years after he walked away.

When the initial job description was unexpectedly watered down, it led many to believe it would rule Woodward out of contention.

But the RFU management board, on a majority vote, then effectively reinstated the old job specification, with the England manager - currently Johnson - reporting directly to the performance director after the World Cup later this year.

The interview process is understood to have been put back to the beginning of next month, and Woodward's announcement will come as a huge blow to his admirers within Twickenham's corridors of power.

Woodward's announcement was welcomed by both Moynihan and Hunt.

Moynihan said: 'Clive's decision to forgo possible opportunities with the RFU and remain with the British Olympic Association is welcome news for Team GB.

'As we work to provide British athletes and their NGBs with the highest levels of service and support in connection with their participation in major international Games, the work Clive and his sport team are doing is critical.

'British athletes can be confident in knowing that Clive and his team are working in close partnership with performance directors, coaches and other leaders throughout British sport to find and deliver the crucial, difference-making innovations and services that will help underpin their continued success in the international arena.'

And Hunt added: 'We are now in the critical phase of our planning and preparation for Team GB in London 2012.

'And I am delighted to know Clive will continue making important contributions to those efforts as a member of our delegation leadership team and as our director of sport.

'Clive understands exactly what it takes to deliver under intense pressure. He has been successful in converting years of planning and preparation into success on the field of play.

'He is a highly-respected voice in our preparation, and I am proud to have him as a member of our team and as one of our deputy chefs de mission.'

Woodward Back in RFU Performance Spotlight

Sir Clive Woodward 

Sir Clive Woodward is back in the frame to return to English rugby after another Rugby Football Union U-turn over its new performance director role.An emergency board meeting voted to instruct chief executive John Steele to reverse his decision to downgrade the role to exclude any involvement with Martin Johnson's England team.


Steele's actions had been seen as a move to block Woodward's involvement. But the 2003 World Cup-winning coach will now be favourite to take the job.


The original job description for the role included a reference to responsibility for all representative teams, up to and including the senior team. 


On Tuesday, an RFU press release insisted there had been a "misunderstanding" in terms of the scope of the role, and that the job description had been changed to remove the senior team from the performance director's remit. 


The latest change in the situation sees the role reverting back to its original scope, and seemingly clearing the way for Woodward - who is understood to be on the shortlist despite not having formally applied for the position - to make a return to Twickenham.


The new performance director will now act as line manager to the England head coach after this autumn's World Cup.


Woodward out of the running.Woodward is director of elite performance at the British Olympic Association, a job he has held for the past five years following a spell working in football with Southampton.