A Rugby Football Union (RFU) council member has had his privileges suspended for seven months after making a discriminatory comment about England World Cup winner and pundit Maggie Alphonsi. Matthew Smith, who represents Warwickshire, posted on Facebook during France's 48-46 victory over England in the Six Nations: 'Can someone please explain to me WTF does Maggie Alphonsi know about men’s rugby?'
An independent disciplinary panel initially handed Smith a one-year ban, but reduced it to seven months due to mitigating factors, including his support of a 2025 girls' rugby festival and his service to the sport. His RFU Council privileges and access to RFU premises, including match tickets and travel expenses, have been removed until 14 December. However, Smith can still attend meetings virtually and retains his voting rights. The RFU cannot remove a council member; that decision rests with Warwickshire and its members.
Alphonsi, who won seven Six Nations titles before retiring in 2014, expressed disappointment with the outcome. She said: 'I have to publicly defend myself which will likely lead to further misogyny and sexism from people who equally hold this view. ... The only punishment he will receive is not getting hospitality tickets to some England games. I am extremely disappointed with this. It shows sexism and misogyny still exists within the game and it’s important it is stamped out and called out.'
Smith sent a letter of apology to Alphonsi after the punishment was confirmed. He said: 'I shouldn’t have shared my view online and apologise if this has caused any offence to anyone. Once I realised my error of judgment I immediately removed the post. ... I had no intent of causing any offence and that unfortunately I made an error of judgment which was hampered by personal stress and anxiety.'
Alphonsi, who served nine years on the RFU council, was the first former women's player to work as a pundit in men's Test rugby in the UK. She has been an established member of ITV's punditry team since the 2015 World Cup.
