Coronavirus: Some clarity on rugby season expected over coming days

World Rugby are working in tandem with the domestic competitions as well as international unions and federations in an effort, if the fight against the coronavirus pandemic and time yet permits, to come up with various contingency plans for meaningful conclusions to the 2019-20 season in late summer. Some clarity in this is expected over the coming days.

As things stand, the Guinness Pro14 suspended the season indefinitely on Thursday while also calling off the scheduled final in Cardiff City Stadium on June 20th. The expectation is that the existing suspensions for the Top 14, Premiership Rugby and European competitions, will have to be extended as well.

With the Super Rugby championship also suspended, the global game has been forced into an unscheduled off-season which, even if there was a resumption in the mid or late summer, would then first require some kind of pre-season.

Clearly the full schedule of matches in the aforementioned competitions, the summer tours and the four postponed Six Nations games (Ireland v Italy along with the entire fifth round of Italy-England, Wales-Scotland and France-Ireland) cannot all be accommodated.

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While World Rugby and the six respective unions and federations will prioritise the latter four games, Premiership Rugby, the LNR, the Pro14 and EPCR will be equally desperate to give their competitions some integrity with a meaningful conclusion.

No less than the Top 14 in France, the Premiership in England and the European club tournaments, for the 2019-20 Pro14 season to be completed in any meaningful way would require some creative thinking.

As well as having to declare cancelled matched 0-0 draws, this could see an abbreviated knockout stage, with the quarter-finals and possibly the semi-finals all scrapped with, say, a final between the two Conference table winners.

Were there to be a final at some date in the future, it would be hosted by the team with the highest ranking from the league or conference stages, which as things stand would most probably be Leinster.

The southern hemisphere and Japan (where England are due to play) will be equally keen for the northern hemisphere countries to fulfil their tours, which are lucrative for the host unions. Ireland, France, Wales and Scotland are due to play Test series in Australia, Argentina, New Zealand and South Africa in July.

However, given the increasing global travel restrictions due to the impact of Covid-19, these tours seem highly unlikely to take place which, as an aside, could provide scope for the European seasons to be completed in some shape or form.

For example, the Australian government has decreed that all visitors to the country must be quarantined for 14 days, while Qantas are due to postpone all flights into Australia from the end of March. The IRFU are believed to be in regular contact with their Australian counterparts and both will give the tour every chance to take place. But given the need for some kind of pre-season and completion of the Pro14 and European competitions, the tour looks seriously in doubt.

In all of this, the world’s governing body, its unions/federations and tournament organisers will all be acutely mindful of their commercial obligations with broadcasters and sponsors as well.

It is also surely only a question of when, rather than if, before the Under-20 World Championship, scheduled to start on June 28th in northern Italy, are cancelled entirely.

And late on Thursday night, the IRFU announced that the domestic amateur season was to end with immediate effect.

Speaking about the announcement, IRFU director of rugby development Colin McEntee said: “The decision to end the domestic rugby season for 2019/2020 season has not been made lightly. All options were discussed and the IRFU is satisfied it has arrived at the only equitable solution.

“These are challenging times for us all and we know clubs will be impacted by this directive, but we will look back at this season as one where we put the physical welfare of our rugby community above all else.

“Clubs are now in a position to make plans for the 2020/21 season. We look forward to marking the 30th anniversary of the All-Ireland League."