Overview
- Warwickshire RFU said Matt Smith resigned from his role as chair and his seat on the RFU council on Tuesday after a recent disciplinary process.
- Smith posted a now-deleted Facebook comment in March questioning what World Cup winner Maggie Alphonsi knew about men’s rugby while she was working as a TV pundit.
- An independent three-person panel gave Smith a seven-month sanction that removed his council perks, including match tickets, meals, travel and access to RFU premises.
- Alphonsi and the RFU Women in Leadership Collective said the punishment was inadequate because Smith initially kept his voting rights and they have demanded his replacement and policy change.
- The case adds pressure to an RFU governance review that aims to slim the 62-member council and sharpen disciplinary rules, and the Warwickshire board has begun the process to find his successor.