Wyatt the deafening voice amid Rotherham's silence

Rotherham seem in no rush to confront the power-suited grandees of the Rugby Football Union and England Rugby Ltd over the decision to deny them promotion to the Premiership – indeed, their silence has been deafening – but there are pockets of resistance elsewhere, not least in the sporting corner of the House of Commons, where the former England wing Derek Wyatt spends the majority of his time. The Labour MP for Sittingbourne has brought the Rotherham case to the attention of the Office of Fair Trading, and expects an initial ruling by the middle of next month.

"We need to find out if the Premiership clubs are acting like a cartel," he said yesterday. "It is important to get a ruling because it could affect football, cricket and other sports if, as seems likely, franchises come into being over the next five to 10 years." Together with Denis McShane, the member for Rotherham, he has asked the OFT to examine the case in relation to European law as embodied in the 1998 Competitions Act.

All this will come as a surprise to the Rotherham owner, Mike Yarlett, who publicly acknowledged that his club had failed to meet the criteria governing entry to the Premiership – criteria he had helped formulate during the 2000-01 season, when the Yorkshiremen were in the top flight. "While we are saddened and disappointed by the decision, it is, nevertheless, one the club accepts," he said at the time. "An appeal will not be made. We were fully consulted throughout the process and believe ERL conducted the matter in a professional manner."

Rotherham have not disputed the ERL version of events – a damning account of confusion and incompetence on the part of the club, climaxing in Yarlett's failure to furnish the board with proof of a proposed move to Rotherham United's Millmoor stadium. It remains unclear whether the Millmoor project will go ahead next season, or whether Yarlett will make further attempts to develop the club's existing venue at Clifton Lane, which currently meets scarcely any of the criteria laid down by the Premiership fraternity.

Meanwhile, the former England World Cup scrum-half Richard Hill has decided to leave his assistant coach's post at Harlequins for a similar job at Newport. Hill will operate alongside Leigh Jones, with whom he worked successfully at Ebbw Vale, at Rodney Parade next season, thereby ending a two-year association with the London club.

Jones has been appointed to replace the South African Ian McIntosh, who returns home this weekend after presiding over a sharp upturn in Newport's fortunes. The Gwent club have qualified for the 2002-03 Heineken Cup – a feat that proved well beyond Quins, as Hill knows only too well – and with the former Springbok back Percy Montgomery expected to sign a two-year deal over the next few days, they will start the new campaign as one of the favourites for the Welsh title.