James Haskell admits rugby "just doesn't appeal to me" as he laid bare the problems facing the sport, which he believes could still get worse.
That was before he maintained his stance that the divisive Eddie Jones should still be guiding the national side, with his refusal to "play the game" costing him after a poor autumn series that ultimately saw him lose his job. He's now plotting England's downfall with Australia, whom the Red Rose could meet in the last four of the World Cup in a matter of months.
Before that though English rugby and the RFU have to stop the demise of a sport that seems to be in free fall. London Irish were the third team to go out of business in less than a year, joining Worcester and Wasps. The financial problems of the sport continue to be in plain sight.
The Premiership has been as attractive a product as it's ever been, with Haskell admitting "rugby at its best is amazing, at its worse is just awful." The powers that be are grappling with a desire to make the game safer, all whilst ensuring it remains attractive to new viewers.
Haskell though, doesn't think they're making a success of it, calling for a commercialised model that can help clubs stay afloat.
Haskell, represented by Under Armour, who is backing the Sports Slam Campaign led by Sports Direct, told Mirror Sport: "I don't think we've seen the end of it. On The Good, The Bad, The Rugby we always try to be positive, but I don't think rugby is in a good spot. I don't think it knows what it wants to be, these clubs have been run in such a way that they don't have the fanbase, they don't have the market, rugby doesn't make you any money, it costs you money.
"You've got to have multi-purpose stadiums, you've got to have opportunities. I think rugby is held back by a lot of old school mentality, a lot of old school ways of doing things and I think you're seeing the reaping of that. All the values people harp on about, its not relevant, this is business and entertainment. If you're not getting numbers through the door.
"The game's too busy pretending its about collision and avoidance with all the rules, it's been ruined. We're obviously trying to make it safer, but I don't watch it, I dip in and out if I see England game. It just doesn't appeal to me, I'd much rather watch rugby league or MMA where there's action, some identity. Rugby at its best is amazing, at its worse is just awful."
Attendances remain an issue with Premiership runners-up Sale attracting just over 4,000 fans for some home games. The stadia infrastructure can limit crowds, especially in the latter stages of the competition. Nevertheless the final at Twickenham saw it lowest attendance for well over a decade.
Marcus Smith is seen as one of the sport's biggest names in this country. Haskell though isn't convinced the average man on the street would even know who the Harlequins fly-half is. Changes have been made to aid their profiles - player's names were recently put on the back of their England shirts to help promote them as individuals.
That is the smallest step of a long journey however with Haskell, who claimed 77 caps for England and is known for having frank conversations, believing the humble, quiet image of a player needs to be canned and personalities need to be allowed to thrive.
He added: "The average fan's got no idea what they're watching, no idea what they're seeing. Clubs are going bust because they haven't been marketed. Where are the new fans coming from? How can you run a business when you get 5000 through the door. It has got to be made into an American sport model, we've got to build stars. Get rid of humble, keep your head down, be a good man - all that c*** has got to go out of the window. We want big names, big moments, highlight collisions."
The RFU's remit currently is two-pronged. They need to save the sport domestically whilst also getting the national team back to a situation where they can challenge. As recently as 2020 England won the Six Nations. In 2019 they sat No 1 in the world rankings.
All that was achieved under Jones, who took over in 2015 from Stuart Lancaster. The Aussie's personality didn't always endear him to the media whilst his selections often caused a stir. Defeat to South Africa, greeted with boos from the Twickenham crowd in November, was the final straw.
Less than a year out from the World Cup he was axed, replaced with one of his former lieutenants in Steve Borthwick, a Premiership winning coach. Haskell, who felt the sacking was wrong at the time, is still struggling with the logic of the decision, defending his former coach who paid the price for, in his opinion, not publicly lamenting players he thought weren't up to standard.
He said: "I love Steve Borthwick, I think he's a brilliant man and a brilliant coach. It was always going to be tricky coming in off the back of Eddie, I still don't think that was the right decision. I think if you're going to replace him with anyone Borthwick was the man, but I still think it was a mistake, I don't really get what the logic is.
"I know what the logic is - he didn't play the game and also one of Eddie's things was that when he didn't pick players people thought he should pick, he didn't comment on it, he let the media and fans get het up about it. What people forget it is, if you bring in a player who's been tearing it up in the Premiership and you bring them into England camp, suddenly the intensity rises, there's less space.
"So what's he supposed to do? If Eddie doesn't pick that player and the media gives him s***, does he come out and say well that guy can't tackle and we've discovered he's not fit enough - or does he not say anything? I feel like he was a victim of that kind of stuff and I'm always astounded that he protected the players. There's players he never picked because at the top level they couldn't do it, but he doesn't come out and say that which allows the media to fill the space."
Haskell was speaking as he promoted Sports Direct's initiative, which calls for kids to ‘Play For Fun, Play For 60’ recommending a minimum of 60 active minutes per day. He said: "I think so (we need a culture shift). One in three children in the UK gets fewer than 30 active minutes of any sport. I grew up, yes in a privileged background, but I played sport all the time. If I didn't play sport, there was a place to take me where I could.
"My energy was focused on sport, I might not have been good at them, but it teaches you so many lessons in life. People will always perform better if they've had some form of exercise. They'll concentrate better, they'll sleep better. We need some competition in our lives, this campaign has been supported by Sports Direct, they're all getting behind it."
Teachers and schools across the UK can take part in Sports Slam through free sign up on the Sports Slam website .
