WARWICKSHIRE’S representative on the Rugby Football Union (RFU) Council, Matt Smith, has resigned from his role after posting discriminatory comments about former England World Cup winner turned pundit Maggie Alphonsi.
Smith posted a comment on Facebook during coverage of France’s 48-46 win over England in the Six Nations back in March.
In a now-deleted post, Smith questioned Alphonsi’s knowledge of men’s rugby which led to the RFU stripping the perks of his position for seven months following a disciplinary hearing.
The panel determined Smith’s comments were discriminatory and in breach of the RFU Council code of conduct.
Smith removed the post, accepted the charges against him and, after receiving his punishment, reportedly sent a letter of apology to Alphonsi.
Alphonsi, who won 74 caps for England and lifted the World Cup in 2014, questioned the punishment handed down to Smith by the RFU in a post on social media.
RFU Council members are volunteers elected by clubs which means the RFU does not have the authority to remove a Council member from their role.
The RFU code of conduct states the organisation has a “zero tolerance approach” to any form of discrimination and harassment.
A statement from the Warwickshire RFU reads: “On behalf of Warwickshire RFU we would like to announce that Matt Smith has resigned from his position as chair of Warwickshire RFU, in light of a recent disciplinary process.
“The board has accepted his resignation and will begin work on finding a replacement chair and RFU Council member in the coming weeks.
“We recognise that this situation has raised important concerns and as a constituent body, we want to be clear that we take issues of sexism and misogyny seriously.
“Creating a respectful, inclusive environment across our game remains a priority for us all.
“In the short term, Damian Dixon (honorary president) will become interim chair, until the AGM on Thursday, July 2.
“Charlie McGinty will act as interim council member for Warwickshire until a new appointment is made.”
Smith played for Old Leamingtonians RFC for more than 20 years and later became secretary at South Warwickshire RFU.
He also acted as team manager of Warwickshire under-20s for a decade and became president of the county’s RFU from 2019 to 2021.
A statement from Old Leamingtonians reads: “Following a review by the management committee, Old Leamingtonians RFC can confirm that Matt Smith will not be offered the right to renew his membership for the 2026/27 season.
“Any future application to rejoin the club will be subject to completion of appropriate equality, diversity and inclusion training and the management committee being satisfied that the standards of conduct required under the club’s constitution, rules and policies can be met.
“Old Leamingtonians RFC remains committed to providing a welcoming, respectful and inclusive environment for all players, volunteers, members, parents and supporters.”
