RUGBY:Francis Baron, the English Rugby Football Union's chief executive, last night insisted he would not follow Andy Robinson out of the exit door as senior figures at Twickenham suggested he should play no part in the appointment of a new head coach.
Baron, blamed by many for the initial appointment of Robinson as head coach and the failure to jettison him sooner, promised that a structural shake-up would benefit any new regime. But the changes Baron envisages fall short of those demanded last night by a member of Club England, the body that recommends England appointments.
Simon Halliday, the former international centre, called on the chief executive to concentrate on financial affairs and leave the appointment of coaches to experts.
Club England meets next week to consider the fall-out from the Robinson affair and Halliday said: "We need an immediate change in structure and that involves empowering groups of people who have the skill sets - Club England in other words. In future we should be making decisions about the England set-up, not merely making recommendations for the RFU's management board to consider.
"If we are to deliver on the England front we need a separation. That means Francis getting stuck into what he has done quite successfully, namely the financial side of the union, and leaving the rest to Club England."
Baron, speaking on BBC radio, said Club England already had the power when it came to making key rugby appointments.
"They recommended that Andy Robinson be appointed head coach two years ago," he said. "I did not take that decision and there has been a significant amount of inaccurate reporting this week. I am surprised at Simon's comments and I have no intention of walking away. My job is to see the right bodies take the right decisions and I am determined that England will regain the number one spot in the world."
England's captain, Martin Corry, says he and his team-mates feel personally to blame for Robinson's removal and he believes the RFU will make things worse if it opts for a temporary solution in the new year. Rob Andrew, the RFU's elite rugby director, will be making his recommendations on Robinson's successor next week, but Corry, who led the side in all four autumn Tests, insists the players were more guilty than the axed coach of letting England down.
"We are responsible for someone losing his job and it weighs incredibly heavy on me," said Corry last night. "Robbo's a good guy and I'm very sorry to see him go. It was our individual mistakes which cost us, not least in the second South Africa game when we were 14-3 up.
"For the good of the English game it is crucial the decisions as to what happens next are the right ones. You want it done quickly but you also want to make sure the best person is put in place. Temporary arrangements don't work.
"We've got three quality coaches and a number of others employed by the RFU. My view is that it has to be an appointment for the long term. If not, then leave it to the guys who are already there to run the show."
Corry is also upset at the way the head coach's protracted departure was handled and is calling for all parties to act responsibly as they seek to drag English rugby out of the mire.
"What I'd like is for things to be sorted out behind closed doors. We shouldn't be washing our dirty linen in public and people shouldn't be leaking stuff.
"Conducting campaigns in the newspapers is not the way to go. There are a lot of people with a lot of vested interests in this. People should just keep quiet and get it sorted. All this constant dropping of little hints harms the game."
