Rugby: Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern confirms changes to Bledisloe Cup quarantine rules

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has confirmed that the New Zealand government will change the quarantine rules to allow the Wallabies to prepare for the Bledisloe Cup in New Zealand.

Ardern said today that he had spoken with Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison last night to make sure the All Blacks’ two Bledisloe Cup matches in New Zealand would still take place in October.

“I just wanted to make sure he was aware … Last night I was informed that there were some little rumors about the arrangements we had in place,” Ardern told Mike Hosking of Newstalk ZB.

“It’s always best to get ahead of these things before they escalate. Since we had a little deal, we go there, they come here, we both benefit. I thought he would want to know that there were some discussions about whether the Australians were still going to get there. “.

Wallabies coach Dave Rennie previously criticized New Zealand Rugby’s expected tight shift from his team following the quarantine measures planned for next month’s Bledisloe Cup tryouts.

New Zealand has been confirmed to host two Bledisloe Cup events after losing the Rugby Championship host rights due to restrictive quarantine protocols.

According to NZ Rugby President Brent Impey, New Zealand’s quarantine protocols initially restricted teams to individual isolation for the first three days, before they were allowed to form 15 bubbles to train from day four to day seven. . After a second negative test, they could expand the bubble to 25 from days eight to 14. “If there was a positive test, then it will be all over,” Impey said.

Speaking on the matter this morning, Ardern confirmed that the CEO had reported that the Wallabies could now start training after three days and as a full team after six days.

She believed they kept coming: “There is no reason why they shouldn’t.”

He said the risk profile for Australians was different for teams in the broader Rugby Championship: South Africa and Argentina. In the case of the latter, some players and coach Mario Ledesma had tested positive for Covid-19.

“Quarantine shouldn’t be a problem,” Ardern added. “We just want to make sure we go there and they go here and it’s a fair arrangement.”

Ardern’s comments come after Rennie came to rule out his team so he couldn’t play the first round of the Bledisloe Cup on October 10, which was initially raised as a potential date.

The Herald understands that the tests are scheduled for October 17 and 24, but Rennie still wanted changes to the quarantine restrictions.

Sports Minister Grant Robertson said the Wallabies will be set up in Christchurch for their pre-Bledisloe Cup quarantine.

“The most likely location will be in Christchurch,” Robertson told TVNZ. “It will be in a dedicated isolation facility, and they will be able to travel by bus to and from their training grounds.”

Ian Foster: There are no excuses for Australia not to play the Bledisloe Cup events

All Blacks coach Ian Foster said he was “excited” about the change in quarantine rules to allow Bledisloe’s testing to go ahead.

“Very excited about that, although we are bitterly disappointed to lose the Rugby Championship, but we are done sulking about it,” Foster told Newstalk ZB. “We are looking forward to it and now we are eager to resolve these Bleds. A little water to get under the bridge, but today’s news is positive.”

Foster also responded to Rennie’s threat to skip the first test entirely, saying there are now no excuses for Australia not to play both tests.

“It came out strong based on the information about the quarantine. We heard that. But at the same time we were busy talking to the government to relax it.

“Now I think we have done it, when you see a fair situation that consists of giving two teams a fair chance to prepare. Basically, having 13 days off to prepare for a test match, in an international sports world, is huge.

“Really, I don’t think there is any excuse for them not to come play that weekend.”

Foster admitted that losing the Rugby Championship host rights to Australia was disappointing, but declined to say that New Zealand “ruined it”.

“I wouldn’t say we screwed it up. It seems because we had it and then it was gone. While frustrating, we are fully aware that there are a lot of variables at play and, frankly, life hasn’t been fair.” This year for too many people and we have to take that one on the chin.

“What we do have to do is make sure we do these two Bledisloes and in a fair way. I think what has happened now with the quarantine has basically put us in a situation where we can offer Australians a full nine days in preparation. for quarantine, four full days once they’re out, which is roughly 13 days based on my math.

“When you look at our preparation for the first Bled, we have a three-day camp, a four-day camp, and a six-day start, so we have 13 days. I can’t really see any reason why we can’t play that end of week “.

Official dates for the Bledisloe Cup trials have not yet been confirmed.