The past 12 months have not been the easiest for English rugby.
Unfortunately, 2024 will be remembered as a year of poor performance for the men’s national team and a bonus scandal.
As we welcome the new year, here are my ten wishes for 2025, both in the UK and around the world.
Last year will be remembered as a year in which the men’s national team achieved poor results.
1. The RFU must step forward.
The RFU needs to move on from the scandal surrounding it. Tom Ilube has paid the price of a lawsuit over unfair bonuses paid to top officers of governing bodies and I have no sympathy for him whatsoever.
Whether Chief Executive Officer Bill Sweeney will stay or go will dominate the discussion. But this is just the tip of the iceberg.
In my last column I made clear the need for the RFU to become more transparent, honest and accountable. Sweeney and new interim president Bill Beaumont must step up to the plate. Otherwise they will actually face the music in January.
English rugby needs to get ahead of the Six Nations. Otherwise, your sideshow will be a huge distraction. We’ll soon find out if Sweeney and Beaumont are the right people to lead.
2. Bring back the backbone of the game.
What makes the eye-catching bonus for the RFU big wigs so controversial is that it comes at a time when the organization has announced losses of £37 million and made 40 staff redundant.
Most of those who lost their jobs worked at the grassroots level. It is a complete shame that the RFU sacked most of them.
RFU chairman Tom Ilube paid the price for the bonus row that swept the governing body.
CEO Bill Sweeney must step down in January. Otherwise he will have to face the music.
I can’t believe that board members or directors who readily accepted exorbitant bonuses for default can look in the mirror. Rugby cannot succeed without someone in the role of Youth Development Officer. The RFU needs to bring it back.
I have a background in teaching so I understand the need to teach rugby to children from a young age. You have to make it fun. We will have two development officers in each county. One man and one woman. The RFU must have at least 100 development staff.
They will say they can’t afford it, but they absolutely can as we have a £100m deal from Allianz for the stadium naming rights deal with Twickenham. Bring them back and grow your game.
3. The glory of red roses
English rugby needs support and the England women’s team is certainly one to celebrate.
England are scheduled to host the Women’s World Cup in 2025 and are firmly positioned as favorites to win it. Anything other than Marlie Packer lifting the trophy would be a failure.
The RFU’s investment in the women’s game has had a huge positive impact. After all, the World Cup could completely change the landscape of English women’s rugby, but John Mitchell’s side could take it to a new level if they win it all.
Performance on the pitch is important, but the RFU must strive to connect with fans in the same way that football’s Lionesses have done so effectively.
The RFU should invest the £100m it gained from the Allianz deal in development personnel.
England will host the Women’s World Cup in 2025 and the RFU needs to turn its players into stars.
I want the Red Roses to fill our stadiums and news feeds. We need to turn our players into superstars and inspire the next generation. There is no better opportunity than now.
By all accounts, Mitchell is doing a good job as a coach, but his role needs to be taken up by a woman to advance the women’s game at all levels. It was another missed opportunity for Sweeney and Co.
4. A typical Lions tour
The men’s game needs the feel-good factor again and next summer’s British and Irish Lions Series in Australia should provide just that.
We’ve seen the Wallabies starting to come together as a force this autumn, and we really hope this series ends up being a huge success.
I believe this Lions tour has the potential to unite the game globally. I’m biased, having coached and played in Sydney for five years, but I think there’s no better place to tour than Australia. Tickets for all matches have been selling like hotcakes and it will be amazing to see a sea of red watching, especially after the last Lions tour of 2021 was played in empty stadiums in South Africa due to coronavirus.
I also hope that all four home countries have good representation in the squad. I think this is a distinct possibility.
Australia will look to come together as a force to make the series difficult for the Lions.
The tour could help unify the game and the four home nations should be well represented.
5. Enjoy rugby in the park again
Speaking of Australia, when I lived in Australia one of my biggest highlights was playing touch rugby on Sunday mornings.
It was really fantastic. Sports have made everyone active. It was really fun. Touch rugby for children can be a great development tool for the game. The real proof that rugby is coming back to life is seeing it played in the park.
Running clubs and paddle clubs saw significant growth in 2024. Why can’t the RFU do something similar with touch rugby?
6. Ban on British overseas players from playing
This is almost certainly not going to happen, but I would once again urge the RFU to overturn its ruling banning players from overseas teams from playing in the UK.
It is outdated, devalues international rugby and damages Steve Borthwick’s chances of success.
South Africa has players all over the world and has won the last two World Cups.
At the highest level, one player can make a difference. For example, if Jack Willis were to remain at Toulouse, he would not be eligible for the England squad under current circumstances. Willis is the player who can beat England at the next World Cup, but Borthwick cannot if his selection struggles.
Will Jacks is ineligible due to rules preventing stars from overseas teams from playing for England.
The rule is outdated and hurts England manager Steve Borthwick’s chances of success.
7. God-given rugby!
On the pitch, England ended 2024 with three losses from four in the autumn and displayed a style that rarely left fans out of their seats. Significant improvements must be made in 2025, and this must begin in the Six Nations.
Can you imagine an England XV playing in the style coached by the brilliant Pat Lam? Most problems in English rugby can be solved with the stroke of a pen!
Bristol are playing divine rugby under Lam this season. Their center Benhard Jans van Rensburg will be eligible for the England squad in 2026 and I would like to see him in the white number 12 shirt in the future, with midfielder Tommy Freeman and halfbacks Alex Mitchell and Marcus Smith.
England’s attack was not good in the autumn. Something needs to happen quickly if England are to find their next step.
England, playing in the style of Bristol manager Peter Lamb, will solve their problems once and for all.
Benhard Jans van Rensburg will be eligible to play for England from 2026.
8. Wales back to winning ways
I went to school in Wales and it’s hard to see a very proud rugby nation struggling so badly. I really hope they can get back to normal, but that seems like a difficult task. Warren Gatland has lost 12 consecutive Tests, including all matches in 2024.
But he stayed on for the Six Nations. Gatland and Welsh rugby have all sorts of problems that need to be addressed and I’m surprised he doesn’t leave.
Wales begin the Six Nations alongside France and Italy. If they don’t win in Rome in the second round, I’m not sure they can recover.
On paper they look like a half-decent team, but like England, they have to pick who is eligible to play for Wales, regardless of their club team. Welsh rugby needs to get sharper and faster.
Warren Gatland is under pressure as Wales have lost all of their 2024 games.
Wales need to beat Italy in Rome. Otherwise, there will be no recovery in the Six Nations.
9. Take the 7 seriously
Sevens is a great form of rugby. It amazes me that we are marginalized across the UK.
This year’s Olympics were amazing and Antoine Dupont helping France win sevens gold was my favorite sporting moment of 2024.
Team GB did not even qualify for the Olympic sevens. It’s not enough. Sevens can be a great pathway to 15-a-side rugby and we need to start investing in it again. England will benefit as a result, but so will Scotland and Wales, who have smaller player pathways.
Antoine Dupont helped France win Olympic rugby sevens gold at Paris 2024.
10. Start your promotion
The Championship club has bared its teeth over the past few weeks. It’s fantastic. The RFU must give bottom teams a chance to qualify for the Premiership.
Wouldn’t it be great to see a club like Ealing or Coventry win the Championship and play for a top spot via the play-offs against a team bottom of the Premier League?
What has been clear over the past few weeks is that everyone at all levels of English rugby has had enough of the RFU boss.
Exciting changes are happening. The RFU must embrace these opportunities to ensure the game thrives at all levels.
Otherwise, things will get worse very quickly and I’m not sure rugby will ever be the same.
