New Zealand Rugby (NZR) chairwoman Patsy Reddy has said she will review her position if her proposed board reforms are scuppered by the country's provincial unions.

The new leadership structure proposed by Reddy, which was released on Wednesday, calls for all members of the board to be independent, as advised by a governance review which reported last year.

The 26 provincial unions have drawn up an alternative proposal, however, which demands that at least three of the nine members have two years' experience on one of their boards.

"I've been clear that I'm committed personally to delivering an independent model of governance for the game," Reddy, formerly New Zealand's governor-general, told Stuff Media.

"I'm hoping that the provincial unions will support this way forward, but if the voting members choose to vote a proposal that maintains that level of representation - yes, that's my red line.

"As I've said to (the provincial unions), if they do proceed with this model and it's successful, then I would review my position because I cannot support it."

The governance review was commissioned in December 2022 after NZR secured a NZ$200 million ($119.78 million) cash injection by selling a stake in its commercial business to U.S. private equity firm Silver Lake.

The review said NZR's leadership structure was not fit for purpose in the modern age. REUTERS