A former Welsh rugby international who claims he is head of rugby development with the Dublin-based governing body for world rugby, IRFB Services (Ireland) Ltd, was given leave by the High Court yesterday to seek an order on Monday preventing the termination of his employment as games development manager.
Mr Geoffrey Evans (62), who retired from international rugby in 1973, took up employment with the organisation in September 2001. However, all his duties had begun to diminish since a meeting on December 1st last with the IRFB's CEO, Mr Mike Miller, and in recent days, he effectively had no work daily and a "non-job". In an affidavit, Mr Evans said that, prior to the December 1st meeting, he had been working hard dealing with day-to-day work issues and also anticipating and preparing for the implementation of a strategic plan in the sphere of his area of rugby development.
Since an announcement of the restructuring of his department with that of the tournaments department on January 17th last, all the people formerly reporting to him were now reporting to another person. His duties had been eradicated and he was left with no work to do on a daily basis.
"As a result I feel humiliated both in my job and also in the eyes of the rugby world," Mr Evans said. "I also feel a deep sense of frustration in not being able to work in a job full of potential and promise.
"My sleep pattern has been badly affected as I find myself continuously thinking about my job predicament. I worry about the uncertainty as to my future, both job-wise and also where I shall be living."
Mr Justice Abbott granted leave for the case to come back to court on Monday.