Former Rugby Australia president Hamish McLennan accuses Rugby Queensland and ACT Rugby of escalating the hostility to the point that it led to his sacking

Former Rugby Australia president Hamish McLennan has accused Rugby Queensland and ACT Rugby of escalating the hostility to a level that led to his sacking.

McLennan was sacked at a board meeting on Sunday night when six state and territory unions called for an emergency AGM.

In an interview with Sky News Australia, McLennan said he believed the Queensland and ACT unions were key factors in his sacking.

„I think it definitely came from the Brumbies Act and Queensland,“ he said.

„I think there was widespread support for me from Andrew Forrest and Nicola Forrest in Western Australia as well as the (Western) Forces, the Victorians and the New South Welsh.

„So I don’t think it’s accurate to give the impression that I was opposed by everyone in that regard.

„But I think I’ve made some comments that have upset a lot of people, but I think rugby has needed strong leadership for some time now and it’s become a little bit unstable.

McLennan lost the support of Queensland and the ACT Union when he pushed for a centralised model for Australian rugby. Under this model, the state and territory unions would be run by Rugby Australia.

The NSW Rugby Union is the only state to join the model, with Victoria expected to be next in line.

The two states were the only unions not involved in the open letter calling for McLennan’s sacking.

The centralised model aims to bring high performance (professional rugby) and commercial operations under the control of the RA.

The state unions support the RA’s high performance centralised model, but Queensland and the ACT are reluctant to hand over their commercial operations to a national body.

Queensland Rugby Union president Brett Clarke called McLennan on Friday to talk about the position taken by the six defiant state unions.

„We also felt that the chairman at the time was not someone we felt could effectively lead us into the next generation of rugby,“ Clarke said.

„This is in no way a personal attack on Hamish. It was about his cultural fit, his values and some of the decisions he made.

„We just feel that Phil (Waugh, RA’s chief executive) may not have had enough space or opportunity to really do his job. The final straw may have come from the Rugby World Cup.

Australia’s poor record at the Rugby World Cup, failing to make it out of the pool stages for the first time, and the sudden resignation of Wallaby head coach Eddie Jones has put McLennan under increasing pressure.

McLennan denied reports that hiring Jones less than a year after the World Cup was a „captain’s choice“, insisting he led the conversation before the board made a unanimous decision.

„The fact is that at the board meeting last night it was emphasised that it wasn’t the captain’s choice,“ McLennan said, „and I don’t think it’s fair to say that.

„I don’t think it’s fair to portray the board as a bunch of followers either.

„I certainly dominated the discussions and trade talks. But Eddie is an excellent coach. It didn’t work out this time. So is it Eddie’s fault or the system’s fault? I think it’s the system.

McLennan also said it would be unfair to suggest he was the reason for the Australian Kangaroos‘ poor results on the field, which have been steadily declining.

„I think it’s kind of cute. Since we reached the Rugby World Cup final in 2015, we’ve been going downhill.

„In 2019 we were knocked out in the quarter-finals and we haven’t won a Rugby World Cup in 22 years and a Bury Cup in over 20 years