Rugby, Australian Football: Cotton hits out over England

Former England captain Fran Cotton claims the team will struggle to progress past the quarter-finals of the next World Cup if the set-up he insists is restricting their preparation is allowed to continue. Cotton, a prominent member of the Rugby Football Union (RFU), believes coach Andy Robinson has been hindered by the players' lack of availability for training with the national squad.

It is the same issue that prompted the resignation of former coach Clive Woodward after the reduction of the number of days England players were released for training from 20 to 16. While giving his full support to Robinson, Cotton insists the situation must be addressed if the national squad are to progress.

He told the Daily Mail: "There is nobody better in the world than Andy Robinson to do the job but we have to give him every chance by ensuring he has proper management of the players.

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