WASPS OUTBREAK
Premiership final in doubt after 7 positive tests
WASPS are arranging an emergency round of Covid testing this weekend in the hope of confirming that an outbreak at the club won’t derail their appearance in the Premiership final a week on Saturday.
The Coventry- based club were yesterday stunned to learn that four players and three members of staff had tested positive for the virus.
Wasps cancelled training for the rest of the week as a precaution, which has undermined their build-up to the showpiece at Twickenham, where they are due to face Exeter.
With the next scheduled tests not until Tuesday, Sportsmail understands Wasps are consulting with Public Health England about the best time for an extra round to take place.
That is likely to happen on Saturday or Sunday with a view to providing an update before Lee Blackett’s squad resume training on Monday.
Last night, a Premiership source insisted: ‘ There is no impact on the final at this stage.’
However, there will be fears that the conclusion of the domestic season could be plunged into further chaos, after the outbreak at Sale — 19 positive tests one week were followed by a further eight the next — forced them out of the title race.
Wasps are facing one of three scenarios. Their hope is that the next tests will show no further positive cases, which would mean the outbreak is under control and they can prepare to take on Exeter with minimum disruption.
That is a possibility as the initial speculation is that academy players have tested positive and no other players have had to enter isolation as a result of the swift, forensic contact tracing which went on all yesterday. The second scenario is that the additional testing reveals more positive results, but a modest number which will not prevent Wasps fielding a match-day 23 in the final. The ‘ nuclear’ scenario is that there are several more positive test results and the club are unable to fulfil the fixture. In that event, they would have to forfeit — leaving Premiership Rugby to decide whether the trophy would be awarded to Exeter or the final should go ahead, potentially involving a losing semi-finalist. Bristol moved promptly to confirm they have had no positive test results this week, despite facing Wasps at the Ricoh Arena last Saturday. Pat Lam’s squad will fly to France as planned today, ahead of tomorrow night’s European Challenge Cup Final against Toulon in Aix-en-Provence.
Exeter have also had a Covid all- clear from their latest tests, but they are awaiting confirmation that Racing 92 have overcome their recent outbreak to be cleared for Saturday’s Heineken Champions Cup Final in Bristol.
Chiefs director of rugby Rob Baxter revealed there will be a medical review meeting this morning if the Parisians still have unresolved issues.
The indications last night were that the continent’s marquee occasion will proceed as planned.
After declaring that England wing Jack Nowell has recovered from injury and is available to line up against Racing, Baxter described the tension which accompanies each round of testing, saying: ‘Today the test results came through at about 5.20am. I can tell you for a fact that virtually all the staff are sat by their phones by 5am because it’s the thing that flips everything.
‘If you have positive tests, you’ve straight away got to start dealing with not only how you change selection, but also you’ve got to start the track and trace procedures to see which other players might be removed from selection.’
Racing have been training in Corsica to escape the Covid threat in Paris and their Scotland fly- half, Finn Russell, said: ‘We came over to a hotel here on Sunday, to keep us in a bubble ahead of the final. That should hopefully work.
‘We’ve been in the hotel to try to be as safe as possible. I believe that we are all going to be OK for the weekend.
‘We’re very isolated as a group here so I would think no one will be able to bring it in or pass it on to us.’