Rugby: ‘They have been fully consulted’ – Sanzaar responds after NZ Rugby claims about Rugby Championship schedule

Sanzaar CEO Andy Marinos has responded to New Zealand Rugby’s complaint about the newly released Rugby Championship schedule.

Sanzaar and the Rugby Australia hosts today announced the full match schedule for the four-team tournament, which will see the All Blacks take on the Wallabies in the final week of matches on Saturday 12 December, a plan the NZR chief Mark Robinson claims that New Zealand did not. I disagree.

The final game of the competition will mean that All Blacks players and staff will be forced to spend Christmas in managed isolation, a situation that NZR hoped to avoid.

“We worked on the understanding and all of our planning and scheduling was based on the All Blacks last game being on December 5 to give our players and management time to get home, undertake the 14 day quarantine in New Zealand. , and then be with their families at Christmas, as will be the case with the other three teams in the tournament, “Robinson said.

“We understand business considerations in programming. However, the well-being of our people is an incredibly important factor in this as well.

“We are committed to playing in the Rugby Championship and we know that match scheduling has been a complex and dynamic issue to resolve, especially with quarantine protocols, but we have not accepted this schedule and we are disappointed with the announcement.”

Speaking to Newstalk ZB after Robinson’s comments, Marinos said NZR was fully consulted about the show from the beginning.

“They have been fully consulted and have been part of the process from the beginning,” Marinos said. “And we understand your concern that they do not want to have their players quarantined over Christmas. But we have also agreed that we will continue to work and see how best to fix the solution.

“I think it’s fair to say that there is a significant amount of commitment and sacrifice from the four countries that are playing in this competition. They have all had to spend long periods of time away from their homes.”

Marinos admitted that NZR requested that the last day of the competition be brought forward, but said the plan was always to keep the current schedule and that the matches were to be confirmed to the NSW government today.

“It’s always been the 12th and all of the New Zealand modeling was always the 12th also when they were hosting the event in New Zealand. So the only changes to the kiwis’ request to put it on day 5 have already come. that Australia granted it.

“New Zealand was fully aware that we had a D-Day today with the New South Wales government. It certainly did not surprise the other unions at all.

“We have questioned a multitude of different options and considerations and the other unions certainly supported what the original schedule was, which is what has been proposed, a six-Saturday schedule. And so we have to move on.”

Marinos said the main reason for the current schedule, which will feature 12 tests on consecutive weekends from November 7 to December 12, was to avoid safety and welfare concerns for express delivery players.

“I think the challenge we have is trying to condense the competition that brings important player safety issues to the table and that’s a pretty tough schedule, since it’s six tests in six weeks.

“Trying to condense that into a five-week schedule or have a shorter response time on games for certain teams, I think we’ll all be reasonable in understanding that it also has a fairly significant player safety and welfare issue. Like everything else. This year, there is no silver bullet, there are elements of compromise as we move through this process.

“Australia has a preferred model for the same reasons that it was the preferred model when there was the possibility that it was in New Zealand and that is that it gives you the best player result from a wellness perspective in terms of the extent of the games. .

“And obviously commercially it gives you the best performance and the best chance to carry rugby through a whole series of doubles matches and a whole host of matches that have meaning and not some kind of standalone games that may not have as much appeal. “.

Marinos said rescheduling the game is unlikely to be on the cards because it would put the safety and well-being of players at risk.

“We will continue to work as joint venture partners as we have in the past. Certainly this is not uncharted territory where we do not have a full line-up, but I am pretty confident that we will get the right solution. And I think we have to work. continuously to see if there is a more optimal outcome around a quarantine regimen.

“As we saw in Bledisloes, I’m sure we can work together and get a better result, as we will have to do it with the [South] Africans and Argentines who have to return themselves to a quarantine environment. “

Disagreements aside, or as Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern previously referred to as “Sanzaar policy,” Marinos said she was looking forward to international rugby returning.

“I think people are focusing on all the other issues. Absolutely that is the most exciting point that we have the Championship happening now in a centralized location and being able to move away from international rugby. It can be a very good celebration of rugby with the best teams. of the world playing. “

The Rugby Championship 2020 schedule

First round: Saturday, November 7, 2020

Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane

Argentina v South Africa
Australia in New Zealand

Second round – Saturday, November 14

Bankwest Stadium, Sydney

New Zealand v Argentina
South Africa v Australia

Third round – Saturday, November 21

ANZ Stadium, Sydney

New Zealand v South Africa
Australia vs Argentina

Fourth round: Saturday, November 28

McDonald Jones Stadium, Newcastle

Argentina vs Australia
South Africa v New Zealand

Fifth round – Saturday, December 5

Bankwest Stadium, Sydney

Argentina v New Zealand
Australia vs South Africa

Sixth round – Saturday, December 12

ANZ Stadium, Sydney

South Africa v Argentina
Australia in New Zealand