DEAL IMMINENT AFTER MORE PRODUCTIVE TALKS

CONFIDENCE is growing that the IRFU and Rugby Players Ireland (RPI) are nearing an agreement over potential pay cuts after another round of productive talks again yesterday. Both parties have been in dialogue for more than a month, with the IRFU looking to reduce salaries due to severe financial losses in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The negotiations got off to a rocky start back in June when details of the IRFU’s proposed plan to cut player wages by 20 per cent across the board were leaked to a newspaper. However, Sportsmail understands that frosty relations have thawed in recent weeks and both sides are slowly nearing a resolution.

IRFU chief executive Philip Browne and his RPI counterpart Simon Keogh are leading the discussions. Keogh is reporting back to the RPI board, which includes chairman Rob Kearney (left), Ireland captain Johnny Sexton and Munster skipper Peter O’Mahony. Leinster and Munster will break for a fortnight today while the Connacht and Ulster squads, who returned to action a week later than their provincial rivals, will train next week before taking a two-week break as well. Meanwhile, the IRFU have unveiled a modified format for the All-Ireland League. In a bid to ensure player safety and contain the spread of Covid-19, the season will be split into two stages. The first stage will keep all friendlies and competitive matches localised between September and December 2020 with the formation of conferences in Leinster, Munster, Connacht and Ulster. The second stage, which will kick off in January, will see a scaled down AIL, which will consist of a nine-game league season with semi-finals and finals in all men’s and women’s divisions.