RFU eye a novel romance

RUGBY:IT COULD be a glittering, romance-filled launch and the start of a relationship that could burn brightly forever. One way or another, the glint in Rugby Football Union's eye is undeniably hopeful. The RFU's new association with the romance fiction of Mills and Boon is bound to set hearts racing, when, according to sources in Britain, rugby-themed novels arrive on the scene prior to next season's Six Nations Championship.

This year, Mills & Boon celebrated a century as one of the most enduringly popular brand names in publishing and next year rugby is going to try and piggy -back on that popularity by exposing itself to the women of Britain and Ireland through the prism of, scrums, ice baths and the five-man line-out. Feel the heat already?

The idea behind the marketing scheme is to broaden the female fan-base in rugby and what better way to do that than have the muscle-laden, lantern-jawed male hero lining out with the famous English rose on his shirt and a dozen female fans swooning over him at Twickenham (but he only has eyes for one, or, perhaps as Mills and Boon goes, two or three).

The top secret story plans as well as the details of the arrangement between Mills and Boon and the RFU are still under cover, although RFU officials were noted at the company's centenary bash earlier this year with a subsequent blog revealing (before it was speedily removed) that the RFU were breathing as heavily as a prop in extra time at the thought of the marketing coup.

Founded by Gerald Mills and Charles Boon in 1908 as a general fiction publisher, the company now has almost 75 per cent of the British romantic paperback fiction market. A distinctive feature of Mills and Boon is the short length of time their books are available to buy. They publish a set number each month, which are sent to subscribers and displayed on stands in book shops. At the end of the month any unsold copies in the shops are withdrawn and, like most unsuccessful national team managers, pulped.

Midas PR, the London-based public relations company, could not put any flesh on English rugby's plot to evangelise the women of these islands. However, a number of popular websites outline the many delicious story-lines that the RFU, through the company's stable of writers, could vigorously pursue.

According to critics, the 'modern' fiction line focuses on "being glamourous" and "sophisticated" and features "passionate romance" with titles featuring "intense relationships, often very sexual, often reflecting shared feelings desires and dreams within the couple."

The medical story-lines centre around contemporary romances set against the background of the medical profession, while the 'intrigue' plot is said to be suspense at its best - danger, deception and desire.

Some other critics point to the genre promoting misogyny and the submission of women to men. Surely not rugby!

The England women's team this year did do rather well anyway and won the Six Nations Championship by a very significant margin. They beat Italy 76-6, Wales 55-0, France 31-0, Scotland 34-5 and Ireland 17-7 to claim a Grand Slam.