Doug Ash, chief executive of English First Division Rugby, resigned yesterday after less than a year in the job. Ash has endured a turbulent period in charge of the umbrella organisation for Allied Dunbar Premiership One clubs.

He has been at the centre of the bitter wrangling between his employers - the clubs led by tycoons like Sir John Hall, Frank Warren and Nigel Wray - and the stalwarts of the Rugby Football Union.

His period in office has been marked by battles over the European Cup, the timing of the establishment of a British League and unsanctioned friendlies between Premiership One clubs and Welsh teams Cardiff and Swansea.

He will continue as full-time chief executive until the end of October and may continue to run key projects on a part-time basis until a successor is found.

But Ash, who says he has found it difficult to fit the EFDR job in with his other business interests, says the new accord between the clubs and the RFU heralds a bright future for the game.

"The Mayfair Agreement and the new relationship with the RFU are great steps forward, the Anglo-French tournament nearly came off and the British League, which will be a superb competition, is now on the agenda for next season," he said.

News of his resignation coincided with the release of more details of the proposed new British League to be organised by the Six Nations Committee.

As rugby in the Northern Hemisphere is set to reorganise itself on cross-border lines, the European Cup remains in place, but the committee has confirmed a European League as a non-runner.

The British League will be based on the four home unions, and England will dominate the event numerically.

"It is hard to envisage the exclusion of any Premiership One clubs," said Ash. "We don't want our members worse off. The key for us is commercial sponsorship and TV. Clubs have made commitments in the expectation of future income.

"No one would want to enter into a British League unless we got the same amount of money at the very least for all our member clubs."

EFDR are establishing a group to work with the RFU, so England can present a unified front when it comes to renegotiating with their British and European partners in a series of meetings during the autumn.

"We will make sure that the English clubs approve the final proposals, but we have the twin tasks of convincing the RFU and then the other unions," added Ash.