Rob Andrew loses elite England position in RFU shake-up

Rob Andrew is considering whether to apply for a new job at the Rugby Football Union after his current position as England's director of elite rugby was scrapped.

The RFU's new chief executive, John Steele, has looked to strengthen the organisation's management structure by merging Andrew's elite department with the union's community rugby arm.

The new single rugby department will be divided into the areas of performance, operations and development. Andrew, 47, has been invited to apply for the role of rugby operations director, which includes many of his current responsibilities.

"I am very excited about the future of the game in England, and the re-structuring that will place rugby at the heart of everything the RFU does," Andrew said.

"Change is never easy but there are some exciting opportunities and challenges ahead.

"I will be considering the role of rugby operations director in the coming weeks and in the meantime will continue with my responsibilities as elite rugby director."

Andrew, who joined the RFU in 2006 after being preferred to Sir Clive Woodward, will remain in position until the RFU's recruitment process is completed.

Steele's reshuffle means that England team manager Martin Johnson will report to the new performance director, a position that has heavily been linked to Woodward.

The main focus of Steele's tenure is to maximise the benefits of hosting the 2015 Rugby World Cup for the entire game in England, from the elite level to the grass roots.

Consequently, Steele has brought the community game into the central rugby department, to be managed by a new director of development.

"I have spent the last few months gathering insight and views on how the RFU could better serve the game," said Steele. "What became clear is that while we had a sound commercial platform we did not have enough focus on the quality of the rugby experience across the game.

"So the new structure puts rugby right at the centre of the business and seeks to create more rugby expertise to benefit all levels of the game.

"The next five years will be some of the most exciting in the RFU's history and I wanted to make sure we are in the right shape as an organisation to seize the opportunities in front of us."

Woodward, England's 2003 World Cup-winning coach, is currently the elite performance director at the British Olympic Association.

Even if he was interested in a return to the RFU, it would be a significant wrench to leave the Olympic movement so close to London 2012.