RFU will decide on Preston Grasshoppers' fate - although restructure of leagues could save club from relegation

Paul Arnold’s men were certainties to be relegated from the National League Two North after a wretched injury-hit season.

Second from bottom in the table, they are just one point from officially being relegated with five games left.

However, the coronavirus pandemic has forced all sport – from professional to amateur – to be postponed .

And the RFU have since declared that the rugby season will be cancelled and they will meet next month to decide on promotion and relegation issues.

It is likely that Caldy – who have already been confirmed as champions of NL Two North – will be promoted to the Championship, but situations such as Hoppers are less clear cut.

There is the distinct possibility that the RFU will decide that they will be relegated although who will replace them is unknown.

Five teams in the North Premier – the division Hoppers would drop into – were still in the hunt for the league title until the season was brought to a premature halt and that could see the men from Lightfoot Green theoretically retain their status in the NL Two North.

However, all that may prove to be immaterial as the RFU are looking into a restructure of the leagues, which they were planning on implementing the season after next.

That could now be brought forward in light of the extraordinary circumstances of the past few weeks.

Hoppers director of rugby Gareth Dyer said: “Whether we will survive or go down will depend on what approach the RFU decide to take.

“From our point of view, what is interesting is the league below – which we would theoretically go into – hasn’t got a clear winner.

“There are five clubs who could have potentially won it from here because they all have five or six games left, including some games against each other.

“How the RFU are going to decipher that I have no idea so that could work in our favour.

“There is also an added issue in that we are all aware there is going to be a restructure, which would regionalise the leagues a bit more.

“There is something on the table where we were all due to go into meetings with the RFU to put together our views forward on whether we were supportive of that change in structure

“What would happen is the level we are at now, instead of two divisions one containing the north and midland clubss and the other containing the south and south west clubs, it would be split into three divisions.”