Sir Clive Woodward has urged the Rugby Football Union (RFU) to direct all its energies into supporting England's World Cup campaign amidst a backdrop of administrative chaos.

The RFU, England's national governing body, currently has no permanent chairman or chief executive just nine weeks before the World Cup gets underway in New Zealand as a result of its botched plan to hire a performance director.

Former chief executive John Steele was forced out last month after changing the job description for the new, and still unfilled, position of performance director in May, stripping the role of any responsibility for England's senior Test team.

That was seen as a deliberate snub to Woodward, strongly tipped for the role, by making the post seemingly unworthy of the 2003 England World Cup-winning coach and other high-profile candidates.

Yet 48 hours later another U-turn saw the initial terms of the job re-instated.

Martyn Thomas quit as RFU chairman on Sunday after reportedly being criticised in a review of the fiasco by Judge Jeff Blackett, the Union's chief disciplinary officer. But Thomas remains as acting chief executive.

It has since emerged Blackett, Judge Advocate General for Britain's Armed Forces, could quit his voluntary post.

That is because Thomas, threatening legal action, blocked the publication of Blackett's report in which he is understood to have been criticised severely.

Woodward has previously ruled himself out of a return to the England set-up he walked out on in a row in 2004 and instead concentrated on his position as performance director of the British Olympic Association.

But the former England centre desperately wants attention to move away from boardroom wrangles, with a Red Rose squad managed by Martin Johnson - Woodward's victorious captain in 2003 - bidding to reach a third successive World Cup final.

"For the sake of rugby they've got to move on quickly now," Woodward told BBC Radio Five Live on Tuesday.

"Thanks goodness we've got a Rugby World Cup coming up and we can all focus on what happens on the pitch.

"There are some very good people at Twickenham (the RFU's headquarters in London).

"There always have been, always will be, and I'm sure they'll get it sorted out.

"This is part of the history they won't look back too fondly on but I'm sure they'll get through it and we'll move on quickly.

"The World Cup can't come quick enough now, where we can concentrate on the actual rugby side of things."

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