I breathed a sigh of relief after reading Damien Hopley's interview with the BBC this week.

I can't speak for my colleagues and peers, but the prospect of extending the already lengthy season does not sit well with me.

I understand Tony Rowe's (Exeter Chiefs Chairman) point he made to Radio 5 Live in October 2017, that "the extended season isn't about more games, it's about putting more breaks in there."

My concern is that the 5 week break in the summer gives you your only opportunity to escape from the rigours of rugby. It allows players to switch off, and rest both bodies and minds.

After losing the Premiership final in 2017, that 5 week break was crucial for me to process the match, the season, and realise there's still a world away from the game.

What stakeholders struggle to realise, is that it is incredibly hard to manage weekly breaks during the season. 

If you cut the 5 week break to 4, and add extra 'rest weeks' during the season, chances are they won't be 'rest weeks.'

Injured players with niggles will be expected to present themselves at the training ground, analysis will need to to be done to prepare for the next match, and players will feel obligated to attend 'optional' conditioning sessions.

Suddenly its Sunday night, and you're back in to a full training week on Monday morning, which will be more intense than a regular week to compensate for our down period.

That summer break we so badly need will now fly by quicker than it has done in previous years, and before you know it you're staring down the barrel of another pre season followed by an increasingly physical campaign. 

In my opinion, the RPA and the players must stick together and not waiver on countering this proposal from Premiership Rugby, as player's physical and mental welfare cannot be compromised.