RFU council member resigns after Maggie Alphonsi post

Alphonsi, who won 74 caps for England, said she felt let down by Smith’s punishment.

The RFU’s women in leadership collective then wrote to the union calling for a change in its policy and to dismiss Smith.

The open letter said the punishment, following a three-person disciplinary panel, showed “a significant disconnect between the RFU’s stated commitment to zero tolerance of discrimination and the perception of how those principles are applied in practice”.

The RFU stipulates a “zero-tolerance approach” to discrimination and harassment and forbids public comment that could damage the game or the union’s reputation.

A Warwickshire RFU statement read: “We would like to announce that Matt Smith has resigned from his position as chair of Warwickshire RFU, in light of a recent disciplinary process.

“We want to be clear that we take issues of sexism and misogyny seriously.”

The letter from the RFU’s women in leadership collective read: “We had hoped this case would demonstrate the RFU’s leadership in addressing sexism and misogyny within rugby.

“Instead, it has highlighted areas where further development of policy and process may be required.”

The RFU council – famously described by then England captain Will Carling in 1995 as “57 old farts” – is in the process of being reformed.

A governance review pushed by RFU chief executive Bill Sweeney is set to slim down the council, which includes representatives from England’s counties, the military and Oxbridge, and reduce its power to an advisory role.

Positions on the council are unpaid but come with hospitality benefits which, for England men’s Tests, are worth several hundreds of pounds for each fixture.