Why Moffett said no to Crozier's old job at the FA

David Moffett, the chief executive of the Welsh Rugby Union, has turned down the chance to fill the hole left by Adam Crozier at the Football Association.

His rejection of the FA, which is sure to cause some red faces at Soho Square as the search for a chief executive intensifies, came when the renowned troubleshooter was approached last week. "I was minding my own business," the 56-year-old said, "and I had a call from some headhunters who asked me if I would be interested in being chief executive for the English FA. I did decline, although I have to admit that the increase in salary was very tempting."

Not tempting enough, and the FA will now have to look elsewhere for someone to take the helm off the joint acting chief executives, David Davies and Nick Coward, who have been in control since Crozier resigned last October. If they are to lure a suitable candidate then they may have to raise the salary as the figure suggested to Moffett was £300,000, which is on the low side when you consider that Gordon Taylor, the chief executive of the players' union, the PFA, is said to be on twice this amount.

Nevertheless, it would still have represented a rise of £100,000 a year if Moffett had taken what the FA have touted as the biggest job in British sport. "I was very flattered," he said. "But my job is here and I will stay doing the best I can for Welsh rugby."

It is easy to see why the FA were interested in Moffett. The naturalised Australian, who was born in Yorshire, has an impressive CV with the New Zealand RFU, Australian Rugby League and Sport England. He did leave the latter acrimoniously last year, however, complaining of his hands being tied "by too many committees run by too many blazers", a problem that Crozier himself admitted encountering at Soho Square.

The rifts created by a turbulent 10 months at Sport England are only now being healed with Moffett due to have lunch with Richard Caborn, the Minister for Sport, this week.

If Moffett's decision is embarassing for the FA, it is a huge relief to Wales, which would have been left with the amateur General Committee as main negotiators in the discussions on a new professional structure which reach a critical stage this week.

Tomorrow, Moffett expects the major professional clubs to accept the final proposals for a five-team regional plan in time to meet the 2 April deadline to enrol in next season's European competitions, but he has warned that all the bitterness in reaching this point almost precipitated his departure.

"After the pressure the clubs exerted I did contemplate reconsidering my position," he said. The FA will now be reconsidering their own.