Clive Woodward: English rugby in a mess

Clive Woodward claims English rugby union is a "laughing stock" and in a "total mess" after Sam Burgess returned to South Sydney Rabbitohs.

Burgess came in for criticism for his performances in England's miserable Rugby World Cup campaign, which saw them become the first host nation to miss out on a place in the quarter-finals.

The 26-year-old has opted to turn his back on union and move back to the NRL just a year after switching codes to join Bath on a three-year contract.

Bath and the Rugby Football Union (RFU) were criticised for failing to decide what position Burgess should play, resulting in him being selected at centre for England and in the back row for Bath.

As the RFU conduct its review of the national team's World Cup failure, Woodward - who guided England to glory in the 2003 tournament - has offered a scathing assessment of his own.

"I said last week that Sam Burgess is not to blame for this mess and I stand by it," he wrote in his Daily Mail column. "But with his return to rugby league we've reached one of the all-time lows and most embarrassing points in English rugby history.

"The RFU has spent the last four years congratulating itself on the direction in which we're heading, but the truth is we have marched confidently into a total mess.

"The review after the 2011 World Cup was a shambles. Players and coaches let down by media leaks, good men exposed as scapegoats and lesser men hiding and shirking responsibility. Nothing has changed.

"The panel chosen to identify Martin Johnson's successor somehow selected Stuart Lancaster, a coach lacking any true coaching experience at any level to prepare our national team for a home World Cup.

"Since then Lancaster and his team have been left exposed, as he and the RFU chose not to add any further expertise.

"The result was England failing to grasp what was required to challenge at the World Cup. After a second poor tournament in a row, the errors continue, illustrated by the personnel chosen to review Lancaster and England.

"We are the laughing stock of not only world rugby but also sport and business. The rest of the world says those involved in English rugby are arrogant. I hate this reputation, but that is exactly what the RFU have been.

"The saddest part is the players and fans have been let down. To get it right on the field of play you have to get it right off the field. I wish Sam all the best."