England players and clubs fear the RFU's new hybrid contract scheme could be scaled back or SCRAPPED amid lack of progress... as only Jamie George and Maro Itoje have signed up ahead of this summer

England players and their clubs are growing increasingly concerned by delays and doubts about the RFU’s much-trumpeted hybrid contract scheme, amid fears that it may be scaled back or even abandoned.

The union are supposed to be rolling out new ‘enhanced EPS’ deals in the summer, as part of a wide-ranging Professional Game Partnership with the clubs, but a lack of evident progress is causing alarm within the domestic game and among members of the Red Rose squad. To date, only England captain Jamie George and Saracens team-mate Maro Itoje have signed up for hybrid deals and it is understood that the agreement letter merely outlines the financial terms if the scheme goes ahead.

In theory, national coach Steve Borthwick should be able to nominate up to 25 players who he wants to be included within a core group who will come under greater England management control in return for a fixed sum of £150,000 which will top up their club salary. 

But sources have indicated to Mail Sport that other recent starters in the Test XV who are in contract talks with their clubs have not received any clarity from the RFU about the hybrid scheme.

With no official updates forthcoming from Twickenham, as the PGP negotiations drag on, suspicions have grown in some quarters about the RFU’s true objectives. Both George and Itoje were wanted by clubs in France and Henry Arundell was also offered a hybrid deal before the wing agreed to extend his stay at Racing 92 in Paris, leading to a nagging sense that only those threatening to leave the country are being prioritised.

Frustration has led to speculation that the union may lack the necessary funds to roll out the scheme to the extent which was intended. Alternatively, it is feared that it will simply become a tool to stem the cross-Channel exodus, rather than an all-encompassing means of having greater control over a significant number of squad players.

Various sources contacted by Mail Sport have raised the alarm. One said: ‘It’s not working – absolutely nothing has happened’. Another asked about the hybrid deals simply said: ‘They don’t exist.’ Another said: ‘I think they are U-turning on those’ and yet another added: ‘Details of the contracts are so far off.’

One suggestion is that there is an impasse in the talks over who will have the ultimate say in relation to medical care. Meanwhile, clubs are discussing the future with players who remain uncertain about the exact terms on offer, to such an extent that they are proceeding as if there is no hybrid-deal factor to support their negotiating position, in the face of opposition from abroad.

However, the official line is that all is proceeding as planned. The RFU are adamant that the direction of travel on this key issue is positive. Last week, chief executive Bill Sweeney was asked about the PGP situation and said: ‘We’re in good shape.

‘The current contract expires by the end of June, so we’ll be in a position to go forward with where we are pretty soon and we’ll do that jointly with PRL (Premiership Rugby). Steve needs to make a decision in terms of who he wants in that hybrid contract squad once that PGP is done.’

The Steve he referred to is Borthwick, who was asked yet again about the hybrid deals at the end of the Six Nations and said: ‘Details have not been confirmed. I'm waiting to have them and understand them. The enhanced EPS and Professional Game Partnership, which start this summer, is aiming to be much more joined up, to allow both clubs and the national team to benefit.’

That’s the positive theory. What the reality will be is becoming a matter of growing unease.