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RFU admit they've tried to contact Steve Thompson but are yet to receive formal legal contact

By PA
Steve Thompson in action for England during the 2003 World Cup semi-final against France in Sydney (Photo by Adam Pretty/Getty Images)

Bill Sweeney has revealed the Rugby Football Union is yet to receive any legal contact from the group of former players preparing claims for negligence against rugby’s unions.

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World Cup winner Steve Thompson is among a group of players preparing lawsuits against the RFU, the Welsh Rugby Union and global governing body World Rugby.

Chief executive Sweeney insisted the RFU has not yet received any legal contact over the issue – but also conceded no one at the organisation has yet spoken to former Northampton and England hooker Thompson.

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Chris Ashton lets it all hang out on All Access with his old friend, Big Jim.

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Chris Ashton lets it all hang out on All Access with his old friend, Big Jim.

Thompson is among a group of ex-players suffering early-onset dementia symptoms in their early 40s, with the former front-rower admitting he cannot remember any of England’s matches at their victorious 2003 World Cup.

“It’s important to point out that we haven’t received any formal legal approaches yet,” said Sweeney.

“So all we’re knowledgeable at is what we’re reading currently in the media.

“We don’t have any specific case or specific conditions laid out, so it’s a bit premature really and hypothetical to speculate on what’s going there.

“And we haven’t got into any detailed discussions on insurance or cover because we don’t know the nature of what’s been presented yet.”

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Asked if the RFU has contacted Thompson this week, Sweeney said: “We have tried to contact him this week, unfortunately we had the wrong number for him to begin with, which didn’t help.

“We only found that out after 24 hours.

“But we have tried to contact him, unfortunately we haven’t been able to make contact yet.

“That’s just to have a chat and see how he’s doing, but we haven’t made contact yet.”

Former England flanker Michael Lipman and ex-Wales back-rower Alix Popham are also among the group of ex-players preparing legal action.

Sweeney pledged that the RFU will remain “open and transparent” in reacting to the specific situation, but also in continuing their work to minimise concussions and improve player safety in rugby.

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“It’s a very serious matter, a very serious moment for us; we all love this game,” said Sweeney.

“This has been a very challenging week.

“First and foremost in these legalistic times this is very much a human story.

“And we recognise what’s happening here, we recognise the difficulties the families are going through and then bringing these stories into the public.

“We applaud them for doing that, but also in the context of their motivation which is to improve the game and make it better and safer for future generations.

“We would certainly share that and take it to heart. And it’s impossible not to be moved by it.

“It’s not a time to hide, not a time to go missing; it’s really a time to be open and transparent.

“We’ve got to make sure we’re making the necessary changes, to ensure we’ve got the safest possible game across all the different levels.

Hartley England RWC 2011
Steve Thompson, pictured here at the 2011 RWC, is one of a number of players that are set to sue the Rugby Football Union (Photo by Warren Little/Getty Images)

“And we do take player welfare extremely seriously, I want to reassure you of that.

“It features in every strategic document we produce.”

Sweeney conceded however that the RFU does not currently have any plan for monitoring or testing retired players when it comes to head or brain injuries.

“We don’t have any protocols for monitoring or screening players who have retired,” said Sweeney.

“It’s not to say that’s something we wouldn’t do, and if that’s something we need to consider and build in, then we’ll look at that.

“It’s important to stress that the aim to make the sport safer, and all the work that goes into that, that’s a journey that has no conclusion to it.”

Sweeney also insisted the RFU now has its finances under control, despite expecting to return at least a £30million loss for the 2020/21 financial year.

“We expect to lose about £135million worth of revenue through this financial year,” said Sweeney.

“And that on current forecasts means we’re expecting something in the region of a high £30million loss, which of course is difficult but is better than we were projecting even a month ago.

“We’re on top of the situation, having restructured the business that resulted in 119 redundancies.

“So the RFU business model is inherently still sound, but it will take a few more years to get back to being debt free.”

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Adrian 29 minutes ago
Will the Crusaders' decline spark a slow death for New Zealand rugby?

Thanks Nick The loss of players to OS, injury and retirement is certainly not helping the Crusaders. Ditto the coach. IMO Penny is there to hold the fort and cop the flak until new players and a new coach come through,…and that's understood and accepted by Penny and the Crusaders hierarchy. I think though that what is happening with the Crusaders is an indicator of what is happening with the other NZ SRP teams…..and the other SRP teams for that matter. Not enough money. The money has come via the SR competition and it’s not there anymore. It's in France, Japan and England. Unless or until something is done to make SR more SELLABLE to the NZ/Australia Rugby market AND the world rugby market the $s to keep both the very best players and the next rung down won't be there. They will play away from NZ more and more. I think though that NZ will continue to produce the players and the coaches of sufficient strength for NZ to have the capacity to stay at the top. Whether they do stay at the top as an international team will depend upon whether the money flowing to SRP is somehow restored, or NZ teams play in the Japan comp, or NZ opts to pick from anywhere. As a follower of many sports I’d have to say that the organisation and promotion of Super Rugby has been for the last 20 years closest to the worst I’ve ever seen. This hasn't necessarily been caused by NZ, but it’s happened. Perhaps it can be fixed, perhaps not. The Crusaders are I think a symptom of this, not the cause

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Trevor 3 hours ago
Will forgotten Wallabies fit the Joe Schmidt model?

Thanks Brett.. At last a positive article on the potential of Wallaby candidates, great to read. Schmidt’s record as an international rugby coach speaks for itself, I’m somewhat confident he will turn the Wallaby’s fortunes around …. on the field. It will be up to others to steady the ship off the paddock. But is there a flaw in my optimism? We have known all along that Australia has the players to be very competitive with their international rivals. We know that because everyone keeps telling us. So why the poor results? A question that requires a definitive answer before the turn around can occur. Joe Schmidt signed on for 2 years, time to encompass the Lions tour of 2025. By all accounts he puts family first and that’s fair enough, but I would wager that his 2 year contract will be extended if the next 18 months or so shows the statement “Australia has the players” proves to be correct. The new coach does not have a lot of time to meld together an outfit that will be competitive in the Rugby Championship - it will be interesting to see what happens. It will be interesting to see what happens with Giteau law, the new Wallaby coach has already verbalised that he would to prefer to select from those who play their rugby in Australia. His first test in charge is in July just over 3 months away .. not a long time. I for one wish him well .. heaven knows Australia needs some positive vibes.

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Bull Shark 7 hours ago
Jake White: Are modern rugby players actually better?

Of the rugby I’ve born witness to in my lifetime - 1990 to date - I recognize great players throughout those years. But I have no doubt the game and the players are on average better today. So I doubt going back further is going to prove me wrong. The technical components of the game, set pieces, scrums, kicks, kicks at goal. And in general tactics employed are far more efficient, accurate and polished. Professional athletes that have invested countless hours on being accurate. There is one nation though that may be fairly competitive in any era - and that for me is the all blacks. And New Zealand players in general. NZ produces startling athletes who have fantastic ball skills. And then the odd phenomenon like Brooke. Lomu. Mcaw. Carter. Better than comparing players and teams across eras - I’ve often had this thought - that it would be very interesting to have a version of the game that is closer to its original form. What would the game look like today if the rules were rolled back. Not rules that promote safety obviously - but rules like: - a try being worth 1 point and conversion 2 points. Hence the term “try”. Earning a try at goals. Would we see more attacking play? - no lifting in the lineouts. - rucks and break down laws in general. They looked like wrestling matches in bygone eras. I wonder what a game applying 1995 rules would look like with modern players. It may be a daft exercise, but it would make for an interesting spectacle celebrating “purer” forms of the game that roll back the rules dramatically by a few versions. Would we come to learn that some of the rules/combinations of the rules we see today have actually made the game less attractive? I’d love to see an exhibition match like that.

29 Go to comments
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