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Ivan Van Rooyen (coach) of the Lions during the Emirates Lions team announcement at Emirates Airline Park on October 6, 2020 in Johannesburg, South Africa. (Photo by Sydney Seshibedi / Gallo Images)
- Super Rugby Unlocked faces the very real prospect of being derailed by the coronavirus.
- One match has already been canceled and another next weekend is in doubt.
- Stormers coach John Dobson says losing games could affect the integrity of the competition.
With only seven teams participating in a round of matches, each match in Super Rugby Unlocked it is important in the general context of the registry.
On November 21, when the teams have played six games each, a winner will be crowned and those record points will carry over to a Currie Cup competition in which the same seven teams will play against each other one more time until the end. a final on January 23rd.
After six months of no action as a result of the coronavirus crisis, rugby is now back and fans and sponsors are being rewarded for their patience in a competition that has yielded some surprising results and highly competitive matches.
This past weekend, however, the Cheetahs’ game against the Lions at Ellis Park was called off. It’s unclear if the match will be rescheduled, but given the congested nature of the match roster between now and January, it seems unlikely.
The teams scored two points each and the Cheetahs, who had been in shape in the competition up to that point, missed an opportunity to secure a third straight victory and cement their spot as favorites to claim one of two silver pieces this season. .
The decision to suspend the match was made by the National Institute of Communicable Diseases (NICB) after the Lions tested six players positive for coronavirus, bringing the total number of their players in isolation to 11.
As a result of their clash with the Lions on October 17 and their exposure to one of the infected players, the Stormers also lost Steven Kitshoff and Scarra Ntubeni for their game against the Pumas last weekend.
It was an example of how quickly worries about the spread of the virus can cause players to walk away.
On Tuesday, the Lions will undergo another mandatory round of testing that will effectively determine whether Friday night’s game against Griquas at Ellis Park will take place.
Given that these two teams have so far not won in the competition, splitting the points will obviously not have an impact on who will win Super Rugby Unlocked, but it will affect their efforts to secure a spot in the Currie Cup semi-finals next year. .
However, what is more concerning is that with South Africa expecting a second wave of coronavirus infections, the squads will continue to be affected.
“I wouldn’t say it’s inevitable, but it’s very possible,” Sharks coach Sean Everitt said last week.
On Monday, Stormers coach John Dobson agreed that the virus threatened to derail the tournament.
“We had a very strict and loud talk with the players today about their lives outside the HPC (High Performance Center). We can control what happens, here, but we really can’t control outside. It’s home, [to the] shop, don’t socialize, “Dobson said.
“The Cheetahs could have lost two or three points due to factors beyond their control. The Lions, through Covid, have potentially lost a win at home.
“We want to do our best to avoid being in the same position.
“I think it is a threat to this tournament that some big games are reduced to a Covid situation towards the end and we have to control it as best we can.
“I think the authorities are handling it very well, but now it is clear that this could affect the integrity of the competition.”
Another concern for the Lions is that their players who have been isolated have missed valuable training time.
If Friday’s game continues, it will start at 19:00.
