Covid-19 has given rugby, particularly English rugby, the chance to bring some sanity to its finances.

The virus has given it a one-off opportunity to realign income and expenditure, if the clubs and the Rugby Football Union are brave enough.

Before we discuss Premiership and Championship wages, let us look at by far the biggest proportion of the sport. Right now, many junior club committees will be forced to face the fact that, though they are not professional and now have no income, they are saddled with contracts for players which cumulatively take £30,000-40,000 out of their funds before anything else is spent.

If those clubs are sensible, they will be asking several questions. Why are we doing this? If these players are good enough to warrant paying, why are they not playing in the top leagues? Does it really make that much difference if we are in Yorkshire One or North One East?

When clubs come back together, they should ponder this essential point: what have we really missed? I will bet it is the camaraderie, not the chance to compete in the next ladder of an impossibly long league structure. That is the point of junior rugby, the players and members of clubs enjoying themselves.