Leaked report exposes shambolic England

London: The reputation of English rugby has already received a hammering but the leaking of confidential reports yesterday into the squad's recent Rugby World Cup debacle is as heavy a blow as any.

Any pretence that England were unfortunate victims of circumstance in New Zealand has been blown out of the water and replaced by a litany of examples of avarice and muddle-headed thinking.

Some of the details contained within the documents published by the Times will cause apoplexy among those supporters who paid good money to follow the squad.

To hear players openly criticising their teammates for being money-obsessed and detailing the full extent of the divisions within the squad makes it obvious why Martin Johnson felt the need to resign last week.

Toxic waters

It may even be that the latest revelations will make it considerably harder for the RFU to find a coach prepared to dip his toes into such toxic waters.

The culture within the squad would appear to be even worse than it felt to onlookers at the time.

The captain, Lewis Moody, has already stepped down from international rugby but it would seem inconceivable that the bulk of the squad can possibly be retained for the start of the Six Nations, even with Johnson gone and a new broom appointed.

Of the coaches, only Graham Rowntree emerges with any credit.

Sponsors will recoil in horror, as will anyone remotely connected with the RFU.

It is impossible to think of a squad which has returned home so openly at odds with itself.

Divisive senior players, ineffective leadership, weak management — every single depressing box has now been ticked.

More trouble brewing

The entire shambles is now a matter of public record and any number of reputations have been grievously damaged.

Further trouble could yet be brewing, with Mike Tindall's appeal against the £25,000 (Dh 143,100) fine imposed on him by the RFU due to be heard today.

The 33-year-old was fined and dropped from the elite player squad following an RFU investigation into his conduct during the now infamous evening out in Queenstown.

The Rugby Players' Association described Tindall's fine, which was handed down by the RFU's elite rugby director, Rob Andrew, as "extraordinary" and "unprecedented".

The appeal will be heard by the RFU's acting chief executive, Martyn Thomas, whose own time at the union is about to end. As judicial processes go, it has already been interesting to say the least.