Browne blast for TV plan

WHILE pointing out that he had already outlined the IRFU’s view on Environment Minister Eamonn Ryan’s plan to have Heineken Cup matches relayed on terrestrial television, the Union’s chief executive Philip Browne again stressed their total opposition to the idea at yesterday ‘s press conference.

“My views are well known, all I would say is that Minister Ryan is mistaken,” he said. “To move down the route he is proposing would do significant and possibly terminal damage to the professional game in this country. The outcome of that would be terminal damage to the amateur game and I’ll not be saying anything more about it.”

The IRFU and ERC chief executive Derek McGrath met with the Minister on Thursday to outline their concerns, with the Union estimating that they could lose between €12 and €13 million a year from television income if the proposal went through.