IRFU’S budget could be badly hit if games axed
However, Castle’s comments yesterday raised serious doubts over whether that trip will go ahead.
With television contracts for Super Rugby and the Rugby Championship vital sources of income for the cash-strapped Australian union, fulfilling those deals — whenever the games can be played — will take precedence over any trip north in the autumn.
“The July Test matches are looking less and less likely as the days go by but that will ultimately be a decision that is made in consultation with World Rugby,” Castle said as she announced an almost £4.6m loss for the year 2019.
“It’s multi-faceted, there’s the conversations that will happen at a World Rugby level so we can think about if July doesn’t go ahead, which seems highly unlikely now, and the reciprocal window is available at the back end of this year.
“Whether that means Australia going north to play those games or whether there’s other elements that we need to consider to look after sponsors and broadcasters to deliver content.
“At the back end of the year delivering Super Rugby and the Rugby Championship might be something we need to consider doing.
“There’s those elements around the calendar from a World Rugby point of view.”
If Super Rugby and the Rugby Championship were to be pushed into a later window, it would not just be the Australia visit to Dublin that would come into question with world champions South Africa also set for the Aviva Stadium a week later.
While losing those games would seemingly provide an opportunity to finish off the abandoned Six Nations — Ireland must still host Italy and travel to France — the loss of any home fixtures would have a disastrous economic effect on the IRFU’S budget at a time when players and staff have already agreed to a wage deferral plan to begin in April.
Elsewhere, four Ulster Academy contracts for next season have been confirmed.
Three of the players being brought into the system have come through Wallace High, the Lisburn-based school who reached the Danske Bank
Schools’ Cup final this season only for the coronavirus crisis to cause the competition to go uncompleted.
Scrum-half Nathan Doak — son of former Ulster player and coach as well as Ireland cricketer Neil Doak — has already got a taste of the set-up when featuring for the ‘A’ side in the Celtic Cup last year.
He’ll be joined in Kieran Campbell’s panel by team-mates centre Ben Carson and back-rower Rueben Crothers, both of whom have already featured for Ireland Schools, the latter serving as Wallace’s captain for the past two seasons.
The final confirmed contract goes to Dalriada hooker James Mccormick, who served as skipper for the Ulster Under-18s schools’ side last year.