THE LAST WORD

STEPHEN BROWN’S appointment as the new chief executive of the RFU has been widely welcomed. He is a popular figure, well established within the union, and a shrewd operator, who led the delivery of a superb 2015 World Cup. However, alongside the urgent search for Eddie Jones’s successor, it must be hoped that he also searches for some heart and soul and benevolence within his organisation. The RFU have sufficient wealth to move beyond merely targeting English success and increased profit. They can do more to help the sport outside London and beyond their own borders. So, stage one Test a year in a northern city, even if it means a drop in revenue. And instead of providing assistance to the USA, no doubt in the hope of a long-term return, share a small cut of gate receipts with the impoverished likes of Samoa, who visit next month. If Brown adopts a truly national and global perspective, he can have a lasting impact far from the gleaming walls of Twickenham.