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Cape Town - The Bulls reportedly lodged a formal complaint with World Rugby over the conduct of the English RFU in its pursuit of coach John Mitchell.
The Times of London newspaper reported over the weekend that the Bulls submitted their grievance through SA Rugby after it came to light that the RFU had approached Mitchell directly in June.
However, it appears that World Rugby does not intend to take any action against the RFU because the regulation which covers contracts applies to players only.
The English publication claims the RFU tabled an initial compensation offer of £50 000 (R984 000) before the Bulls responded with a demand for £500 000 (R9.8 million). The Bulls will probably accept a fee of about £250 000 (R4.9 million), the report added.
Recent reports indicated that Mitchell’s move to the England was imminent.
If appointed by England, Mitchell will become their new defence coach, replacing Paul Gustard who left for Harlequins following the June Test series against the Springboks.
The New Zealander’s tenure at the Bulls will come to a premature end as his contract was due to only expire at the end of October 2019. He had a torrid first Super Rugby season in charge of the Bulls, winning just six of 16 games to finish bottom on the South African Conference.
Mitchell was previously the England forwards coach between 1997 and 2000 under Sir Clive Woodward
