RFL chair Simon Johnson on 'jobs for the boys' claim and why rugby league is brimming with fresh ideas

Sutton, who has been with the RFL since January 2017 in various roles, was confirmed as Ralph Rimmer's permanent successor on Wednesday following a successful stint as interim CEO.

Another internal appointment has frustrated some rugby league fans but Johnson insists Sutton has earned the job on merit after coming out on top at the end of a ‘comprehensive’ search process led by international executive recruitment specialists Perrett Laver.

"I would like the whole of the sport to be fully reassured that we started this process with a completely open mind," he told The Yorkshire Post.

"We were determined to find the very best candidate and have a look at the very best people out there.

"We used an independent recruitment expert that helped us throughout this process. They conducted a comprehensive worldwide search.

"We had a large number of candidates which we whittled down from six to three and then down to one.

"I can tell you the process the candidates had to go through was as comprehensive as any I've seen."

He added: "The final candidates had to have a session with members of the staff, a club representative and a mock media interview. They had to have a one-on-one with me and then a full formal one-hour interview, on top of a first stage that involved the candidates being interviewed by representatives of Sport England, club representatives and the RFL Board.

"It is full credit to Tony that he's come through it. It's a sign of how he has grown into the role and impressed everybody with what he's done.

"We had independent people with us on this panel and they all agreed that Tony was the right choice.

"You can look in from the outside and say we just decided to appoint Tony – but I can assure you this was the most comprehensive process I've ever been involved in."

During his spell in interim charge, Sutton – a Cottingham native who spent 13 years at Hull FC – oversaw the realignment of rugby league and the birth of RL Commercial while getting to work with strategic partner IMG on moving the sport into a new era.

Although IMG did not have a representative on the recruitment panel, Johnson stressed that Sutton was a popular choice across the board.

"Quite unprompted, I got calls from a number of people working with IMG – from the highest level right down to the people doing some of their more mundane work – and they were impressed with the way Tony was engaging with them and the contribution he was making," said Johnson.

"Working with stakeholders, we need to make sure they're all comfortable. I think the clubs are going to be happy; Tony has worked pretty well with the clubs at all levels. Certainly some of the messages I've seen have been very supportive.

"I'd ask the fanbase to judge him by what he does. Let him put his stamp on the game."

The RFL has been accused of robbing the game of the opportunity to bring in new ideas and a fresh perspective.

Johnson has pointed to the recent changes as examples of the new direction rugby league is heading in.

"Tony is bringing in a different style and a different culture to the organisation," added Johnson.

"We've got a lot of new things in the sport. On the RFL Board, I've brought in one new director Dr Cherrie Daley who comes from the City Football Group and is really giving a fresh perspective on performance.

"I will be hopefully appointing and announcing within the next few weeks somebody else to join the RFL Board that has played our game at the elite level.

"Then you've got RL Commercial, a brand new board of really talented people across the commercial industry.

"We've also got IMG supporting us so we've got a lot of brand new ideas to drive this sport forward at this time of change."

Not since Richard Lewis in 2002 has the RFL ventured outside the sport to fill its highest-ranked position.

The governing body has been labelled as an insular organisation by a section of rugby league supporters but Johnson believes it shows the game in a positive light.

"We set out to pick the very best candidate from this search but you need to give credit as well to the organisation for putting people into positions where they can step up into the CEO role," he said.

"In the wider corporate world – and I'm a chair of corporate businesses outside of rugby league – if you are able to succession plan within your business to create a smooth transition, that's always very good practice.

"We didn't intend to do it but give credit to Ralph and Karen (Moorhouse, former director) for bringing in Tony in the first place.

"You will see that his style and culture are different – but it is really good practice in the corporate world if you can have succession planning and a candidate that is capable of coming through.

"We tested Tony against some really strong candidates and talented people from outside. There is no way this was a foregone conclusion.

"Within sport there is this thing 'Oh you've just looked inside' but in the corporate world they'd say 'You've developed your talent and let's see how they go.'"