TRYING TIMES..
Provinces await fate as Euro cups seem certain to face suspension
THE imminent suspension of rugby’s European competitions has left the Irish provinces urgently seeking clarity on the situation.
The final two pool rounds of the Champions Cup and Challenge Cup are set to be put on hold after the French Sports Ministr y imposed a ban on cross- border elite sport in a desperate attempt to stem the spread of Covid- 19.
The development has also increased fears that the Six Nations may not go ahead as scheduled from February 6, with France due to face Italy in the curtain- raiser.
It also throws up the possibility of a championship going ahead without Les Bleus, although they do not play in Paris until February 28 and the hope i s that the situation wil l have i mproved by then.
France are then not due to play in the UK until March 13, when t h e y f a c e Engl a nd a t Twickenham.
But last night it emerged that the Women’s Six Nations will almost certainly be put back to April and
May.
“As quickly as possible, we need to know,” said
C o n n a c h t b o s s An dy
Friend ( inset, top), whose side is due to travel to face
Bristol Bears in the Champions Cup this weekend.
“With everything that’s been going on, the one thing that hurts people and frustrates and stresses people is uncertainty.
“As quickly as we can, we need to have some clarity around d what Monday looks like for us.
“The anxiety affects everyone. It’s literally every week you work day by day and it does take its toll.
“I ’m speaking on behalf of everyone here at Connacht in terms of our staff and players. It has been a long six months.
“Yes, we are still playing and, yes, we love what we do and the uncertainty is nobody’s fault but all I ’m saying is that it does add stress to things.
“It’s not just at Connacht, it’s at ever y other PRO14 and European team out there. So the quicker we can get clarity on what the next few weeks look like, I think it’s going to be better for everybody.
“We will all look back in a few years’ time and ask how the hell we got through it. We’ ll say, ‘ It was bloody hard but we got through it’.”
Bristol boss Pat Lam – the former Connacht coach – has called on the English Premiership to fill the void in Britain left by the suspension of European competition.
“This is a massive opportunity for the Premiership as a competition to bring everything forward instead of doing nothing,” insisted the Bears’ director of rugby ( inset, middle).
“We would have fully- loaded t eams which i s great f or t he competition. We are all prepared to play, we are all good to go.
“So it is a massive opportunity for the Pre Premiership to say, ‘ Let’s go, l et’s bring ever ything fo forward and let’s get going’, b because rugby is great at the moment.
“W h a t w e h a v e learned from last season is that playing midweek games takes a massive toll on players. We don’t want to go down there again.”
Lam’s stance was backed by Exeter Chiefs boss Rob Baxter who has urged the Premiership t o move “positively and quickly ” and bring games forward. European clubs’ boss S i mo n Ha l l i d a y ( i n s e t , bottom) had warned on Friday that postponing his competitions would have “broader implications for the game this season”.
Pressed to elaborate, he said it would force the sport to have a “reset” which could ef fect the scheduling of both Six Nations and Lions tour.
For now Si x Nations chiefs are fer vently hoping European governments can agree a “c oordinat ed approach” to enable their tournament to go ahead safely.
Munster and Leinster are expected to fulfil their PRO14 fixture postponed from St Stephen’s Day when Covid issues in the Blues camp were f lagged.
“L e i n s t e r v Munst e r a r e b i g occasions in Irish rugby,” said Reds boss Johann van Graan.
“So if the decision from PRO14 is that we play Leinster in this gap, we would be looking forward to it.”