Thomas aims to bring Russia in from the cold

Thomas, who was the chief executive of Premier Rugby between 1998 and 2005, is now the vice president of the Rugby Union of Russia. Under his leadership,

Russia have risen from 24th to 16th in the world rankings and he is the first to admit they aren’t quite ready yet to be rubbing shoulders with Europe’s big guns.

But he thinks that within five years they should be challenging the Six Nations’ two poorest members – Scotland and Italy – if a relegation play- off match is introduced.

Thomas admits he would like to see the bottom club in the Six Nations face off against the winners of the

European Nations Cup, the tournament for second tier nations.

He believes that if the closed shop isn’t abolished, it could prove critical to the development of the game in the rest of Europe.

Thomas said: “To be honest, the only way rugby will really develop internationally in Europe is if we re-address the competitions.

“Yes, the holy grail of the Six Nations is a magnificent competition but the fact that it’s sealed off from the rest of the game in Europe effectively means there’s no pathway for other developing European countries to progress.

“I think it is inevitable that there will be some sort of play-off in the future between the countries in the European Nations Cup Division One and the Six Nations. But there will be opposition to that from tier one countries fearful of losing their status. If people don’t embrace that as a possibility in the future

then they are being arrogant in the extreme.

“Countries only deserve to be in the best competition if they are the best and a play-off is the way to prove that.

“If Russia were to take on Scotland or Italy tomorrow, I think they would beat us. But over time that gap will reduce

and an annual play-off is the best way to test that.

“I reckon a play-off in about five years would be meaningful. I’d like to see it earlier though, because I believe it

would invigorate both competitions,” he added.

Thomas believes that the fully-professional Russian domestic competition is on a par with the English Championship, the division below the Premiership.

But he feels that it is only a matter of time before the gap closes because of the unlimited potential of a Russian rugby player.

He says the DNA make- up of Russian athletes makes them ideal rugby players and feels that if

Russia wants to become a major force in the game the rest of the world needs to watch out.

“The potential of Russian rugby players is unlimited. If you started with the genetic needs of a rugby player you would

not go far past what a Russian man can deliver.

“They are hard, fast, physical, aggressive, committed and focused.

“If Russia wants to be good at rugby then given its economic and sporting pedigree, rugby will become a major force.

“Our progress has been such we’ve now considered a ‘performance union’ by the IRB with huge potential. We convinced the IRB we know how to deliver our vision.”