JEFF PROBYN
A FRONT ROW VIEW OF THE GAME

As the Premiership, Champions Cup and Women’s Six Nations hog the headlines, the crisis of the Championship and grassroots game seems to have been forgotten. Despite the knowledge that without a healthy and vibrant game below the top elite, the game will struggle to survive and England will find it increasingly difficult to compete with the other top tier nations.
Since the dawn of the leagues, grassroots clubs have struggled to retain both players and fixtures below their first and second team level. This was in part due to the ambition of clubs...