10 NIGEL MELVILLE

RFU DIRECTOR OF PRO RUGBY

UP6

A new eight-year deal between the RFU and Premiership Rugby is signed and sealed, but Nigel Melville will still have plenty to do as the RFU’s director of professional rugby.

After ten years of boldly fighting rugby’s corner Stateside as USA Rugby’s CEO and president of rugby operations, Melville has taken over the Twickenham remits of Rob Andrew and Joe Lydon (former head of international player development) and will lead talent development in the men’s, women’s and sevens programmes and manage relations with the clubs.

Melville, 55, is a pleasant and businesslike character with vast experience. This Yorkshire scrum-half was a Lions tourist in 1983, then captained England on debut in 1984. He would have won many more than his 13 caps but for a succession of injuries – neck, shoulder, knee – and a broken leg which forced his retirement in 1988, aged 27.

Head of UK promotions for Nike in the 1980s, he sidestepped into rugby administration, first as Otley’s DoR (1990-95), then with Wasps, guiding them to the Premiership title in 1996 and two cup final wins, before winning two more Twickenham finals with Gloucester (2002-05) and topping the Premiership table by a record 15 points.

Melville also helped Reading FC reach the Premier League as a performance consultant before joining USA Rugby in 2006. Now he’s back in English rugby with one of the game’s biggest jobs.

HE’S TAKEN OVER THE REMITS OF ROB ANDREW AND JOE LYDON