London Irish owner Mick Crossan says the financial crisis crippling English club rugby could actually be what saves it from oblivion.
Crossan, who has bankrolled the Exiles since 2013, puts recent ill-health down to the stress of trying to keep the club afloat.
With his players taking a 25 per cent pay cut and backroom staff on furlough, he knows only too well that the sport finds itself at a crossroads.
“Last season cost me £4million and I can’t afford that,” he said.
“Club rugby has to change. We can’t keep relying on rich benefactors. It’s definitely not a sustainable business. Everyone’s suffering.
“This crisis may actually be a saving grace for club rugby, in the respect that everyone will hopefully now cut their cloth to suit their pockets.
“I honestly think it will do club rugby good by bringing commonsense back to the clubs and the finances of what players are being offered. Hopefully it will give a kick in the arse to some of the agents as well.”
Crossan says ending Premiership promotion and relegation is now vital as “everything has got to be made sustainable”.
He is confident Irish’s move back to London this summer to share Brentford’s new stadium will help them turn the corner, but says it is vital the whole sport wakes up to reality.
“For a lot of things in the world, including rugby, this crisis is maybe the kick up the backside people needed,” he added.
