Saturday 14 March 2020 13:00, UK
Super Rugby will be put on hold at the completion of this weekend’s matches due to fears over the global coronavirus pandemic, organisers have confirmed.
The move comes in the wake of new travel restrictions announced by the New Zealand government on Saturday aimed at containing the spread of the coronavirus.
New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said on Saturday that everyone entering the country from midnight Sunday must self-isolate for 14 days in an effort to contain the outbreak.
SANZAAR, which runs the Southern Hemisphere club competition, said on Saturday it "has no option but to suspend the 2020 Super Rugby tournament" for the foreseeable future after the ACT Brumbies host the New South Wales Waratahs on Sunday.
"Following a SANZAAR Executive Committee (EXCO) teleconference in response to the announcement by the New Zealand Government that all returning travellers will have to self-isolate for 14 days, including Super Rugby players, SANZAAR believes it has no option but to suspend the 2020 Super Rugby tournament at the conclusion of this weekend's matches for the foreseeable future," SANZAAR said in a statement.
"Five New Zealand teams play in the 15-team Super Rugby tournament and SANZAAR completely understands the directive issued by the New Zealand Government given concerns globally over the COVID-19 virus and the primary aim to reduce exposure and spread of the virus."
Following this weekend, seven of the scheduled 18 rounds of games will be have been completed.
SANZAAR CEO Andy Marinos admitted they had no choice but to suspend the competition following the directive by the government in New Zealand, who have five teams in the competition.
"The safety and welfare of the public, our players and other stakeholders is paramount and as previously stated we were always going to abide by government and health authority instructions on the issue of COVID-19 containment," Marinos said.
"We are extremely disappointed for the players, our fans, broadcasters and partners but given the complexity of our competition structure, and the multiple geographies that we cover, we have no other option but to align with such directives. We also believe it is time for all those players currently overseas to return home and to be with their families.
"Our priority is, therefore, to ensure our players are within their homes territories from the end of this weekend. SANZAAR will also remain engaged with its stakeholders and will continue to explore avenues to see if we can keep the rugby product alive within our core markets, with the possibility to be in a position to resume the tournament if at all possible in future weeks."
