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The off-field battles between NZ Rugby and Rugby Australia are overshadowing the preparation for the opening match of the Bledisloe Cup in Wellington on October 11.
If Rob Nichol can end this bitter feud between NZ Rugby and Rugby Australia, it may be one of their most memorable victories yet.
The chances that the head of the NZ Rugby Players Association, Nichol, will unfreeze the big freeze between NZ Rugby and Rugby Australia may be remote, but if anyone is able to remain optimistic, especially in a public forum, when everything seems lost, it’s him.
MORNING REPORT / RNZ
SANZAAR has responded to NZ Rugby for scheduling frustrations that mean the All Blacks competing in the Rugby Championship will miss Christmas with their families because they will still be in controlled isolation.
NZ Rugby was left red-faced and angry when Sanzaar stated that he would not compress the Australian Rugby Championship into a five-week schedule, preventing the All Blacks from being home on Christmas Day because they will still be in quarantine after playing the final. game against the Wallabies in Brisbane on December 12.
This, in turn, could result in some All Blacks wanting to skip part or all of the tournament.
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NZ Rugby CEO Mark Robinson has blamed Rugby Australia for failing to reciprocate an earlier deal, which involved having the Wallabies return home to their families on Christmas Day, when he hoped to host the Rugby Championship in New Zealand. .
However, Rugby Australia and Sanzaar CEO Andy Marinos has insisted that the Rugby Championship schedule has not caught NZ Rugby by surprise.
Nichol said the first thing he heard about Sanzaar’s U-turn was a couple of days ago, which contradicts those messages from Rugby Australia and Sanzaar.
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New Zealand Rugby Players Association Executive Director Rob Nichol wants the All Blacks home by Christmas.
“It certainly surprised us,” Nichol said. “We (NZRPA) were like ‘wow, this has not been agreed.’ Let me be very clear: this has not been agreed.
Relations between NZ Rugby and Rugby Australia have deteriorated significantly since NZ Rugby attempted to force the Australians to ditch various teams for a renewed trans-Tasmanian competition in 2021.
Sanzaar’s decision to grant the Rugby Championship host rights to Australia after initially claiming that New Zealand had the domestic advantage has added further tension to the relationship.
Nichol has urged all parties to put aside their complaints and return to the negotiating table.
Mark Metcalfe / Getty Images
Rugby Australia and Rob Clarke are not to blame for the All Blacks’ Christmas plight.
“So what’s going on you know? We are all trying to make this happen. It is not easy for anyone, whether in or out of sport. The last thing we need is for these games to be played.
“We’d like to think that Australia is actually incredibly empathetic with the situation we’re talking about because we were certainly empathetic with their players.
“As a result, they (we hoped) would be very interested in helping us in this situation. That’s it.
“It’s not difficult or anything, but I would have thought it was logical. If it were the other way around, we would certainly be doing our best to help. ”
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The All Blacks will have to choose between Christmas with their families or playing in the Rugby Championship.
Details on the quarantine protocols and logistics for the tournament should also be available to NZ Rugby and NZRPA.
Nichol also said that there is no certainty that the Rugby Championship will go ahead in its current format if the Springboks are not authorized to participate in the tournament in Australia.
“Will they make it to the Rugby Championship? Wow, we hope so, ” Nichol added. “But we have our own fight here to continue on the sports fields, and also in Australia.
“It’s been such an uncertain year and this is just another little twist that we have to deal with as sensibly and responsibly as we can.”
